32 months after he was let go by the RFU, Andy Farrell turned down the opportunity to return to the England set-up.
Farrell departed as England defence coach following the arrival of Eddie Jones in December 2015. He had worked under Stuart Lancaster for the previous three years.
At the time, new head coach Jones said he wanted to have a fresh start with his backroom staff.
The 43-year-old Farrell was subsequently snapped up bt the IRFU. Earlier this year, he extended his contract with Ireland to 2020 - that is a year longer than Joe Schmidt's current deal.
The Daily Mail reports that the 43-year-old Farrell was England's first choice to replace Paul Gustard as defence coach. However, Farrell rejected their approach.
Gustard left earlier this summer to join Harlequins. Australian John Mitchell will instead replace him.
Eddie Jones has also reportedly suffered two further setbacks. According to The Times, the Australian's head of sports science, Dean Benton, has left his post. That is in addition to psychologist Dan Abrahams who has also departed.
Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
