Two members of Eddie Jones’ backroom staff have stepped down from their coaching roles with England.
The Rugby Football Union has confirmed the departure of assistant coaches Simon Amor (attack) and Jason Ryles (skills).
Amor and the RFU have mutually decided to part company so that he can explore new opportunities, whilst Ryles has chosen to stay in Australia with his family due to the challenges created by Covid-19.
For England’s summer series of fixtures, John Mitchell (defence) and Matt Proudfoot (forwards) will continue in their roles while Jones will oversee the attack until England recruit a new coach for that facet of the game.
Amor joined the RFU in 2013 to head up the men’s sevens programme. During his time, he led Team GB Sevens men to silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics, the England Sevens men to silver at the 2018 World Cup, and bronze for the England men’s and women’s teams at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. He also oversaw the integration of the men’s and women’s programmes and helped both teams qualify for this summer’s Tokyo Olympics.
He moved to work with the men’s XVs as attack coach in 2020 and was part of the England coaching staff that won that year’s Six Nations and Autumn Nations Cup.
Ryles joined England on a full-time basis as skills coach in October 2020, after winning the NRL Grand Final with Melbourne Storm. He was also a key part of the coaching staff for the successful Autumn Nations Cup campaign.
Commenting on the coaching changes, Jones said: ‘I’d like to thank Simon and Jason for their contributions to England.
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‘I would like to commend Simon’s outstanding diligence and his hard work, and I have no doubt he will find a role soon that suits him perfectly.
‘With Jason, the Covid-19 restrictions have proved too difficult for him and his family to overcome, which we fully understand but are disappointed for us and the team.
‘They both leave with the best wishes of everyone involved with England and for their future pursuits in the game.’
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