Six Nations 2020: Jones faces epic task lifting England after World Cup anticlimax and Saracens scandal

IT’S a supreme irony that if England had turned up for the biggest match of their lives, the Saracens salary-cap scandal would not look as bad.

As Eddie Jones leads his men back into action in their Six Nations opener against France in Paris on Sunday, the England head coach faces two major challenges.

How to lift a team who went into November’s World Cup final as white-hot favourites only to be battered by South Africa in an extraordinary anticlimax.

And how to lift the clouds from one of English sport’s greatest sewage storms after the nation’s mightiest club side — with four Premiership titles and three European Cups in five years — were condemned to relegation for unfair financial play.

A major plank in the downfall of Saracens was the revelation that they had paid England’s poster-boy lock Maro Itoje £800,000 over the odds for his image rights.

Yet had England beaten the Springboks as expected in Yokohama on November 2 Itoje’s commercial value would have flown.

And, while Sarries wouldn’t have avoided punishment, their accounts wouldn’t have looked anywhere near as outrageous.

Itoje was the most marketable member of a team seemingly destined to rule the world and, had they emulated Clive Woodward’s 2003 World Cup winners, this England side would have rock-star status now.

In the semi-final, Jones’ men produced probably the greatest performance in English rugby history when they dethroned back-to-back winners the All Blacks.

England faced down the Haka, refused to be intimidated by New Zealand’s aura and the 19-7 scoreline represented major flattery for their opponents.

But a week later, England resembled startled rabbits as they were hammered 32-12 by the Boks.

A frustrated Jones said in the aftermath: “We’re going to be kicking stones for four years now.”

Three days later, a Saracens side including several of his key stars — Itoje, skipper Owen Farrell, the Vunipola brothers, Jamie George and George Kruis — were found guilty of breaching salary-cap rules.

Now, as the great annual northern-hemisphere egg-chasing jamboree gets under way, the motor-mouthed workaholic Jones faces a significant restoration job. Given that this is the start of a new four-year cycle, England possess a remarkable sense of continuity.

Jones remains in post, there were no post-World Cup retirements, and his line-up to face France has only one new cap, Northampton full-back George Furbank, while Charlie Ewels returns to partner Itoje in the second row.

Matt Proudfoot joins as forwards coach from England’s South African conquerors and Simon Amor arrives as attack coach but Jones has not stuck to his post-Japan suggestion we could expect an overhaul of the playing squad.

This might be seen as a strength — and, after all, England did have the youngest average World Cup final team in the professional era.

But how will those players react to the intense frustration of failing to do themselves justice in such a career-defining match?

Under Jones, England have blown three major matches — missing out on the 2017 Grand Slam losing in Ireland, tossing away a half-time lead in a virtual Championship decider against Wales in Cardiff last year and the World Cup final.

England may be Six Nations favourites but Wales are holders, France are always thrillingly dangerous, Ireland could be reinvigorated under Andy Farrell and Scotland have even held the Calcutta Cup for the last two years.

Then there is the Sarries factor and the possibility of internal rancour over the idea some players may have been complicit in cheating team-mates out of trophies.

Word from the dressing-room is rival players had long suspected Sarries were at it and that levels of p***-taking and acrimony have been reduced, not increased, by the scandal coming out.

But will Itoje be affected by his central role in the report of Saracens’ wrongdoing? Will he, Farrell and others really stay put and miss out on two years of European Cup rugby?

Or will those Sarries players benefit from a lesser workload in a sport affected by burnout?

And is this two-month escape from their troubled club environment exactly what they need to reinvigorate them right now?

Whatever the fallout, the Six Nations will be as tough as ever.

England will always be the big bad wolves to the French, Scottish, Welsh and Irish.

England arrive as wounded animals with an appetite to restore their reputations.

And winning a Grand Slam would certainly help to boost those image rights.