Eddie Jones

The RFU is facing revenue losses in the region of £45-50million over the next 18 months as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Discussions are being held with Jones and his coaching assistants over a reduction in salary, the PA news agency understands.

Jones is the highest paid coach in international rugby, earning in the region of £750,000 per year.

The 60-year-old’s current deal expires in July 2021 and as yet there has been no move to extend his contract until the next World Cup in 2023.

The 59-year-old Australian, who has committed to seeing out his contract which runs until 2021, is not renowned for owning up to errors.

But he says part of the blame for the 32-12 defeat by South Africa in the final lay with his decision to start with George Ford and Mako Vunipola ahead of Henry Slade and Joe Marler.

Makazole Mapimpi, Tendai Mtawarira and Lukhanyo Am were in the Springboks starting line-up for their 32-12 victory over the Red Rose at International Stadium Yokohama on Saturday.

The trio are set to play under Jones at Twickenham on November 16 along with Herschel Jantjies, who was among the replacements as South Africa claimed the Webb Ellis Cup for a record-equalling third time.

Gatland was speaking after his team had been beaten 19-16 by South Africa, who now face Jones’s men on Saturday in a repeat of the 2007 showpiece.

Meanwhile, Wales face the All Blacks in the bronze final 24 hours earlier – which was Gatland’s last match as boss.

“Well, guys, can you just send my best wishes to Warren to make sure he enjoys the third and fourth place play-off?” Jones said at a press conference.

The fiery Australian has taken aim at the world champions and the New Zealand media, and even thrown out some conspiracy theories worthy of a James Bond film.

England coach Eddie Jones rarely misses an opportunity to stir up the opposition and he's adamant all the pressure is all on the All Blacks.

"No one thinks we can win, there's no pressure on us, we're going to relax and have a great week," he told a news conference.

New Zealand are attempting to make history by winning a third successive Rugby World Cup title, but Jones sees Saturday's semi-final clash in Yokohama as an opportunity for England to cause a major upset.

He believes the talent that convinced him to take the job is starting to shine, as the 40-16 last-eight win over Australia proved.

"I saw a team that could be great and that was the challenge, and they are starting to believe it," Jones said.

The Scots will miss out on the quarter-finals if their match against hosts Japan in Yokohama on Sunday suffers the same fate as England’s clash with France and New Zealand’s game against Italy and is cancelled due to the approaching cyclone.

But Jones has limited sympathy for Gregor Townsend’s men given that all teams knew the potential for extreme weather events to intervene, highlighting the need to take them out of the equation.

It took until the 77th minute to deliver the fourth try through Luke Cowan-Dickie that sealed a 35-3 win at the Sapporo Dome, but a laboured performance left plenty of areas for improvement.

The latest in a string of endorsements is evident in Sapporo, the host city for England’s tournament opener against Tonga on Sunday.

Posters display Jones in a blazer and open-neck white shirt, sat at a table on which sits a bottle of Japanese gin named ‘Roku’. Headlining the poster is the phrase ‘Eddie Recommend’. Roku gin is a part of brewing and distilling company Suntory, who are owners of the Sungoliath club that participates in the nation’s professional league.

the "serious preparation" for their Rugby World Cup opener.

The 2003 winners are set up at a training base in Miyazaki ahead of this year's tournament, though the 31-man squad have been given the chance to do a variety of other activities before the focus switches back to rugby.

They visited a local school during the week, with some players trying their hand at archery, while Jones has allowed them the opportunity to relax as they settle into their new surroundings.