sport news Former boss Eddie Jones says Marcus Smith is not a Test full-back and must play ... trends now

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Eddie Jones sent a strong message to his England head coach successor Steve Borthwick, insisting Marcus Smith is not an international full-back.

Smith – a fly-half by trade who was given his Test debut by Jones – started in the No 15 shirt in England’s World Cup knock-out games with Fiji and Argentina.

Borthwick’s side finished third in France, but Jones believes for Smith and England to continue to develop, he must be picked as a primary playmaker.

‘Marcus is 24. He has got a lot of learning to do, but unless he plays he never gets that learning,’ said Jones, speaking in Cardiff ahead of coaching the Barbarians against Wales on Saturday.

‘At some stage you have got to take a bit of pain if you play a guy like him. He is a good player, a very good player, but he is not a full-back.

‘That is up to Steve but if you want to develop him as a player of course he has got to play 10.’

Speaking to the Up Front with Simon Jordan podcast, Jones added of Smith: ‘He is reasonably good at club level. He’s not a superstar yet. He’s a promising young player.

‘At Test level, these instinctive players take time to mature. I think we’ll see over the next two years whether or not Marcus has what it takes to go as far as his potential suggests he can. 

‘These will be the most formative years of his rugby life if he can stick at it and not end up going to play overseas.’

Smith was targeted physically

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