Rugby World Cup: Eddie Jones says England were overly praised for victory over All Blacks

England coach Eddie Jones. Photo / Photosport

England rugby coach Eddie Jones says his side were overly praised for their Rugby World Cup semifinal win over the All Blacks which was a major challenge leading into their eventual loss in the final.

England defeated the All Blacks 19-7 in an impressive performance at Yokohama Stadium last month before falling 32-12 to the Springboks a week later in the final.

In the build-up to the final, England were being compared with the 2003 World Cup-winning side by British media despite the fact they were yet to lift the trophy.

They were outplayed across the park against South Africa, handed the second heaviest defeat in finals history.

"There's also a psychological challenge after the kind of big win we achieved against the All Blacks," Jones said in his new autobiography My Life and Rugby, as reported by The Times.

"While we did play well, I thought the analysis was a bit over the top. Everyone was slapping us on the back, saying how fantastic we were, how it was the best ever performance by an England team and the best ever win at a World Cup.

"The praise was everywhere. The challenge is to bring the players back to reality. It changes the structure and narrative of the week."

Jones also reveals in My Life and Rugby that he made a selection mistake for the final saying he should have played prop Joe Marler ahead of Mako Vunipola.

"I had been right against Australia and New Zealand but, as it turned out, in the biggest game of our four-year cycle, I got it badly wrong. Hindsight is a wonderful teacher," Jones said.