Eddie Jones expects to be sacked as England coach early next week

Eddie Jones will go into a showdown meeting with his RFU bosses early next week expecting to be sacked as England head coach, following the national team’s dire autumn campaign.

The union hierarchy are conducting an urgent and forensic inquest after England managed just one win in November and an annual return of five victories in 12 Tests.

 Chief executive Bill Sweeney and the rest of a secretive review panel will hold talks with Jones on Monday, but sources have told Sportsmail that the Australian is already resigned to losing his job.

The decision is believed to have come after a review from RFU CEO Bill Sweeney

It comes after a poor run of form for England after seven years under Jones’ coaching

In theory, the 62-year-old has another opportunity to persuade his employers that he remains the right man to guide England through to the World Cup next autumn. However, he appears to believe the writing is on the wall, after a turbulent week in the aftermath of a damaging 27-13 defeat by South Africa which saw the home team booed off at Twickenham.

Sweeney will make a recommendation to the RFU board on Tuesday, after which a decision will be finalised. 

However, it is understood Jones himself has lost faith in the process. It follows claims by his long-time media adviser, David Pembroke, that the union were leaking information — which they categorically denied. Pembroke has since apologised after referring to Sweeney as ‘Slippery Bill’.

Leicester Tigers Director of Rugby Steve Borthwick is one of the contenders to replace him

For Jones, being removed from his post with England would be a sad, abrupt end to his quest to guide the Red Rose squad to World Cup glory at the second attempt — after they reached the final in 2019 but were defeated by the Springboks in Yokohama.

Until recently, Jones appeared to retain the support of the RFU hierarchy, but their mood has shifted markedly during an underwhelming autumn campaign.

Jones launched a remarkable revival when he took over from Stuart Lancaster at the end of 2015 — winning a Grand Slam months after being appointed and going on to a series whitewash in Australia and a record winning run.

But since the last World Cup, England have stalled and fallen behind both the resurgent French and Ireland, recording just two wins out of five in each of their latest two Six Nations campaigns, leading to a growing tide of unrest and calls for a regime change.

Warren Gatland, coach of the British and Irish Lions, is another potential replacement

Undeterred by the criticism, Jones remains determined to keep coaching international rugby and last month a report in Australia claimed he is destined to take charge of the USA for eight years — up to their home World Cup in 2031.

However, that scenario is far from certain and in the short term, in the event that he is sacked, Sportsmail understands that he is unlikely to accept any immediate offers and instead will take a break before seeking a new challenge from early 2024.

For the RFU, this would be untimely upheaval, with the next World Cup just nine months away. If they opt to install a caretaker coach, Warren Gatland may not be available after all, as sources have suggested that he has already been lined up by Wales to replace Wayne Pivac.

In another twist, one of the shortlisted candidates to succeed Jones has ruled himself out of contention. Writing on Friday in the Irish Examiner, Ronan O’Gara — who masterminded La Rochelle’s European conquest last season — revealed that on Wednesday he had ‘informed the RFU to eliminate me from their consideration to be the next English head coach’.

O’Gara rightly sensed that he was not the front-runner, adding: ‘Events may dictate otherwise, but the sense is that the RFU will be making their moves after the Six Nations, and there was no good reason to delay my situation in La Rochelle and mess our president, Vincent Merling, around. That’s why I asked the RFU to remove me from any putative list of head coach options.

‘I don’t believe I was at the top of their list anyway. Scott Robertson is available and Steve Borthwick is on their doorstep. The idea that ‘Razor’ (Robertson) will sit tight and hang his hat on being the next All Blacks coach is a dangerous premise. There’s a lot of water to flow under the bridge between now and the World Cup — and there are a few sharks in that water too.’

As reported by Sportsmail on Friday, one short-term solution being considered by the RFU if Jones is sacked would involve the union’s director of rugby performance, Conor O’Shea, stepping in as caretaker.