FUMING England chief Eddie Jones accused opposite number Conor O’Shea of unsportsmanlike conduct following a hard-fought win.
The hosts downed Italy to record a 17th-straight win thanks to a second-half blitz but were almost undone by some tactical genius.
What was Eddie Jones referring to?
In 1981 Australia captain Greg Chappell told his brother Trevor Chappell to bowl underarm to Brian McKechnie to give him no chance of hitting a match-winning six. It was within the laws of the game at the time but drew a furious reaction from the cricketing world as it was seen as against the gentlemanly traditions of the game.
O’Shea’s side avoided offside rules by not forming rucks – leaving a bewildered Dylan Hartley and James Haskell begging the referee for help.
Official Roman Poite delighted fans by telling the pair he was not their coach.
But despite many hailing the Italians’ inventiveness, Aussie Jones hit out and compared the ploy to an infamous cricketing incident.
He said: “I was remembering Trevor Chappell bowling underarm along the ground. Similar rules today. It’s not a game of rugby, it ceases to be a game of rugby.
“Congratulations to Italy, strategically it was smart, so well done to them. Let’s be serious about it, it wasn’t rugby today.
“I’m not happy with what happened today. That’s not rugby. I’m not angry, I understand what they [Italy] did. But that’s not rugby.”
HIGHLIGHTS | Here's a look back at yesterday's 36-15 win against Italy
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— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) February 27, 2017
Looking ahead to the Scotland game, Jones started the mind games early as he looks to set up an attempt for a world-record 19th win on the bounce against Ireland.
He added: "Scotland have got belief. They're confident of coming here and beating us but they've got to carry the burden of that expectation around Scotland for the next two weeks."
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