Rugby-Jones bears the brunt after promising Australia a quick fix

FILE PHOTO: South Africa v Australia - Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, South Africa - July 8, 2023 Australia head coach Eddie Jones on the pitch before the match REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo

LYON, France (Reuters) - Part of the reason for the ferocious backlash against Eddie Jones after his Wallabies were humbled by Wales at the World Cup on Sunday was almost certainly the veteran coach having offered a quick fix to endemic problems in the Australian game.

Rugby union has been on the wane in Australia at least since Michael Cheika's Wallabies reached the 2015 World Cup final -- and some would argue even that campaign was merely a sticking plaster over an already festering wound.