Rugby Union: Jones hails Cipriani's killer instinct after England fly-half helps take heat off under-fire coach

Eddie Jones hailed Danny Cipriani’s killer instinct as the fly-half marked his first Test start for 10 years with a moment of brilliance to set up the decisive try for Jonny May as England finished their tour of South Africa with a 25-10 victory over the Springboks in Cape Town.

Cipriani had largely been peripheral figure in the contest until his cross-field kick out of a tackle landed perfectly to allow May to score England’s only try of the match as Jones’ side brought their five-Test losing streak to an end to ease the pressure on the head coach.

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“I said before the game we might not have many opportunities and that he (Cipriani) would possibly be good enough to take the opportunity and he did,” said Jones.

“There was one opportunity for us to score a try. It was a beautifully-weighted kick and we scored. So I'm sure he'll be on the front page of The Sun.”

Owen Farrell kicked six penalties and a conversion in a 20-point haul as England vastly improved their own discipline and defence after defeats in Johannesburg and Bloemfontein.

“Discipline is a matter of trusting your team-mates and trusting the system; not trying to solve everything by yourself,” Jones added.

“The team had been over-eager to play well. They probably felt the pressure of the scoreboard and felt the pressure of losing some games. Today, we really just focused on each play as it comes – playing that play well.

“We just handled the big moments better today. If you look back at the last two Tests, in both Tests we put ourselves in a position to win the games, but when the pressure or the scoreboard has changed we haven’t handled those situations well.

“Today, we kept our composure, just focused on the next play, there was great leadership by the players out there.”

Asked what his emotions were after the result finally ended England’s losing streak that stretches back to February, Jones added: “Well, after every Test you either feel good or you feel bad.

“That lasts for about three or four hours, then you’re back on the treadmill again. I feel better than I did the first two weeks, but it’s all on again.

“We’d like to play South Africa next week because we’re coming to a peak now, so we’re trying to arrange a game at Twickenham for next week!”