Danny Cipriani set for shock return to rugby and ready to ‘do something which will make a difference’

DANNY CIPRIANI is ready to return to rugby and put on a virtuoso “ball-playing clinic” – something coaches in the 15-a-side code and other sports are killing.

And he reckons Eddie Jones should never have led England because of the way he is.

The 16-cap Test star, 37, is flying from his Los Angeles base to put his boots back on in Sunday’s hybrid 745 Game in honour of pal Ed Slater and the late, great Rob Burrow and Doddie Weir to raise funds for motor neurone disease charities.

Since moving Stateside, he has divorced himself from the sport he made his name in as he feels the fittest for years thanks to playing ‘soccer’ twice a week.

But he is coming back with a message for those who tried to stifle him and make him follow the establishment – politics and over-coaching are damaging players and the whole sport.

Cipriani, who admits he loved rugby league, said: “It’s a system you have to go along with. That’s why coaches wouldn’t bring me in so much.

“I wouldn’t suffer fools and be like, ‘Yes, Sir. No, Sir,’ when something doesn’t make sense. You have to bite your lip to get picked.

“Eddie Jones maybe felt I’d stand up to him too much and he didn’t feel like he could bully me, so he didn’t bring me into the environment.

“I’ve always said what I feel and it’s only ever controversial to a coach who wants it to be done their way.

“But Eddie isn’t someone I’d want to lead my country because of the way he carries himself. I don’t think he’s happy with the way he is, it’s all he knows to do.

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“You can behave as you want, when you want and get a seven-year contract, just as he did.

“That didn’t benefit English rugby but the powers that be have clearly shown they don’t know what they’re looking at.

“Rugby didn’t evolve much when I played, it doesn’t seem to be doing so now.

“I found rugby easy and fun and opened the door for every team to see the game in a new way but I don’t miss it.

“In sport, the art of coaching is being over-emphasised. We’re seeing systems and structures being played but not as much of the ability for individuals to play as themselves.

“It’s happening in all sports, even in football to a degree. Pep Guardiola created a great system at Barcelona, now everyone’s trying to mimic it.

“But it’s taking the individuality out of players and you see it in rugby a lot. There’s no ingenuity or creativity. There’s so much talent that’s suffering because of it.”

Cipriani – who is making documentaries, including his own, has filmed a show and is building a new career in Los Angeles – is boarding a plane to take to Leeds’ Headingley, where Burrow graced, in Sunday’s clash between league and union legends.

At the heart of it all is Slater – who is living with MND, while Burrow and Weir are central to the event – and he is determined to show he still has it.

The 36-year-old added: “Ed and I first toured New Zealand in 2014 and he was a tough Leicester man.

“Those and us Wasps boys probably didn’t see eye to eye so much but he was so open and willing to learn about a different type of character.

“I kept that close to my heart and at Gloucester, we had a season for the ages and Ed was the leader of the squad.

“And on Sunday, I can’t wait to put that clinic on. The union boys are looking forward to playing in a league way. It’ll be good to show the league boys a thing or two.

“But it’s about human beings and moving together as a whole. These guys, through the difficulty of their challenges, are putting the barriers aside and saying, ‘Let’s get together and do something which will make a difference.’

“That’s the only reason why I’m putting my boots on to play rugby again – hopefully this game can be a legacy being created.”