Italy ruck tactics bemuse England and agitate coach Eddie Jones
- 191
England had a tough time adapting when Italy employed a breakdown tactic that we've seen used by a few teams before, namely the Chiefs in Super Rugby. It resulted in chaos for the halfbacks, and led Eddie Jones to state that it wasn't rugby being played out there.
It has been called a Conor O'Shea masterstroke and while it provided some comic relief for neutrals, England players and fans were none too pleased with the tactic of Italy deliberately not committing to the breakdown. Thus, no ruck is ever formed, and there is no offside line.
Amusingly, England's Nathan Hughes did the same thing a…





