Eddie Jones floats radical change to Wallabies captaincy for Rugby World Cup
Eddie Jones is considering naming multiple Wallabies captains for the Rugby World Cup due to the impact of concussions on the game.
World Rugby head injury assessment protocols have a compulsory stand-down period of 12 days, leaving Jones to consider the need to name multiple Test captains.
"I reckon we'll need probably seven captains with HIA, so you can all write down your seven choices on a slip and send them through to me," Jones joked with reporters.
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Michael Hooper and James Slipper of the Wallabies sing the national anthem. Getty
"But I think we're going to need to have a number of captains, in all seriousness. The way the game is at the moment, I think we're going to need to have a number of captains. So I'm just working out... what will best suit the team, firstly for the Rugby Championship and then obviously as an entrée into the World Cup."
James Slipper is the incumbent Test captain after replacing Michael Hooper at the helm last year.
Hooper withdrew for mental health reasons but is now playing regularly for both club and country and has not ruled out a return to captaincy duties if that was deemed best for the team.
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Other options include experienced Brumbies leaders Allan Alaalatoa and Nic White.
Alaalatoa made his captaincy debut in the ill-fated Test against Italy last year.
But no-one should be surprised if Jones goes completely outside the square with his choices.
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He did just that by appointing New Zealand-born firebrand Dylan Hartley as a left-field England captain when he took the reins in 2016.
"We've got a number of good candidates, they did some really good work with the leadership group that was left by Dave (Rennie), who did a good job with them," Jones said.
"And we've been continuing on with that group and certainly their commitment to be a world class leadership group is there. And then we'll just work out who has the title of captain, and how many captains we have."
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