Eddie Jones has laid down the gauntlet to the Six Nations referees, urging them to protect the integrity of the scrum by officiating put-ins lest the sport become “rugby league with lineouts”.

Jones also defended England’s disciplinary record. His team conceded a 45 penalties and free-kicks during the 2017 Championship, at an average of nine per game. This was the second-lowest total, but still 10 more than Ireland’s meagre tally of 35.

“It’s not the number of penalties,” Jones said. “If you look at New Zealand, they are a high-infringing team. It’s where you give away the penalties and how you give away the penalties.

“We’re working on that all the time. We get the best referees in England to come in. Wayne Barnes works with us consistently in that area. And it’s the adaption from domestic rugby to international rugby that is the most important thing, that they understand there are significant differences in the way the domestic game is refereed compared to the international game.