Steve Hansen surprised by England's move to sack Eddie Jones

Former All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said he was surprised by the timing of the Rugby Football Union's decision to sack Eddie Jones from the England role.

Jones, who took over as England head coach post 2015 World Cup held the role for seven years during which he guided them to three Six Nations titles (including a Grand Slam in 2016) apart from helping them reach the final of the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Nevertheless, he was sacked by the England with less than nine months to the 2023 World Cup following the team's poor performance this year that saw them win just five out of the 12 games.

The board opted to replace Jones with former Leicester director of rugby Steve Borthwick and Hansen said the Australian deserved to be part of the showpiece event in France considering his overall success with the team.

"It was pretty surprising that they would replace him now, when all along Eddie's been saying, 'look, this is what we're building for'," said Hansen to Ticketmaster.

"He's been their most successful coach in history. Some might say that Clive [Woodward] is because he won a World Cup - however the record speaks for itself, doesn't it?

"I know Eddie had a big focus on the World Cup and that's probably what in the end cost him, because he didn't have such a good autumn and people were frustrated by that.

"But obviously, it's their business and they've got to do what they think is right. Eddie's moved on, so the rest of us can too."