So, here we are on the day of the final Test in Australia and England are in a position to deliver a series whitewash over Australia.
Of course it won’t be straightforward to do so, matches against Australia never are, however given their current confidence levels and the expectations that Eddie Jones is pressing upon them I cannot see England letting this match, and a seriies whitewash, slip out of their hands.
In the build up to the final 80-minutes of their season and the finale to this Test series Eddie Jones has again shown astute management. Instead of pandering to England and telling them how brilliant they are doing he’s demanded that they focus on this match as if it was a World Cup Final and highlighted the dangers of believing the praise and hype that’s being laid at their doorstep.
The Australian’s logic is simple, a World Cup requires you to win three huge knockout matches back-to-back after the group stages and right now England have only delivered two. Setting out this scenario to the media, and to his players, allows England’s head coach to test his squad and see if they all respond in the adequate fashion. By pressuring the side and demanding that they ruthlessly finish the task at hand he’s making further steps towards developing England’s cut-throat winning mentality. It's brilliant psychology and another indication of the experience that Eddie Jones is bringing to the role.
Together both Eddie Jones and Dylan Hartley have implored their side to forget about the hype and all of the praise that’s being sent their way. Both mens’ messages are clear; this side, and every individual in it, is only as good as their next game and no-one will be allowed to rest on the laurels of the recent successes. With every moment spent under the tutelage of Eddie Jones England’s mentality is hardening and he is driving relentlessly high standards that must be met, or else.
On the field England’s squad remains the same, something that I believe is the right move and the correct decision. I firmly sit in the camp of 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' and bar James Haskell's injury and I expect a few bumps and bruises there wasn't any need to change personnel. Since the RBS 6 Nations the Ford and Farrell partnership has grown from strength to strength and is now the heartbeat of the side, England's pack have dominated Australia at the set piece and won the gainline and the back three have worked well together. There have been calls for changes and Alex Goode’s name is one that comes up a lot. But, in my mind Mike Brown hasn’t done anything on this tour to warrant being dropped and why would you rock the boat when England have successfully unlocked Australia twice in the same number of weeks? So what about a bench place you say? Well, Elliot Daly provides the flexibility to cover 12, 13, 15 and even at a push the wings and the intensity of the game is likely to be akin to Melbourne therefore a 6-2 split is imperative.
The loss of James Haskell for this final Test is a blow, he’s been sensational this series and has delivered so many momentum shifting moments over the opening two matches. The openside has worked fantastically well with his two back row colleagues and without question this is a huge stage for Teimana Harrison to step onto. However Harrison has all of the right ingredients to take his opportunity and run with it. The Northampton Saint is gutsy, he is a physical operator and can deliver plenty around the park. Eddie Jones has said that England’s pack will collectively need to raise their physicality to try to counter the loss of the 31-year-old. If they do that then we should see England keep a hold on Australia’s back-row trio and also deliver the work rate required to repel what will be a more creative Wallaby outfit.
There’s no doubt that Australia will throw the kitchen sink and more at England. Gut instinct says that they’ll have shored up their discipline and with Michael Cheika finally choosing to field two play makers they should provide more creativity in attack. Personally I’m expecting this to be Australia’s best outing of the series however I cannot see England backing down.
This England side has a steely edge to it, they have pushed themselves from 8th to 2nd in the world in a short space of time and would see anything other than a series whitewash over Australia as a disappointment. Psychologically stepping back onto the plane home unbeaten would be a big boost and would also send a message to the rest of the world that under Eddie Jones they mean business.
If you'd like a few more words about this final Test then take a look at my thoughts for Sky Sports - Australia v England: Five talking points ahead of Sydney Test
Australia: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Dane Haylett-Petty, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Rob Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps; 1 James Slipper, 2 Stephen Moore (c), 3 Sekope Kepu, 4 Will Skelton, 5 Rob Simmons, 6 Scott Fardy, 7 Michael Hooper, 8 Sean McMahon Replacements: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Scott Sio, 18 Greg Holmes, 19 Adam Coleman, 20 Wycliff Palu, 21 Nick Frisby, 22 Christian Lealiifano, 23 Taqele Naiyaravoro
England: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 Jack Nowell, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Mako Vunipola, 2 Dylan Hartley (c), 3 Dan Cole, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 George Kruis, 6 Chris Robshaw, 7 Teimana Harrison, 8 Billy Vunipola Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Matt Mullan, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Joe Launchbury, 20 Courtney Lawes, 21 Jack Clifford, 22 Danny Care, 23 Elliot Daly.
There’s no doubt that Australia will throw the kitchen sink and more at England. Gut instinct says that they’ll have shored up their discipline and with Michael Cheika finally choosing to field two play makers they should provide more creativity in attack. Personally I’m expecting this to be Australia’s best outing of the series however I cannot see England backing down.
This England side has a steely edge to it, they have pushed themselves from 8th to 2nd in the world in a short space of time and would see anything other than a series whitewash over Australia as a disappointment. Psychologically stepping back onto the plane home unbeaten would be a big boost and would also send a message to the rest of the world that under Eddie Jones they mean business.
If you'd like a few more words about this final Test then take a look at my thoughts for Sky Sports - Australia v England: Five talking points ahead of Sydney Test
Australia: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Dane Haylett-Petty, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Rob Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps; 1 James Slipper, 2 Stephen Moore (c), 3 Sekope Kepu, 4 Will Skelton, 5 Rob Simmons, 6 Scott Fardy, 7 Michael Hooper, 8 Sean McMahon Replacements: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Scott Sio, 18 Greg Holmes, 19 Adam Coleman, 20 Wycliff Palu, 21 Nick Frisby, 22 Christian Lealiifano, 23 Taqele Naiyaravoro
England: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 Jack Nowell, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Mako Vunipola, 2 Dylan Hartley (c), 3 Dan Cole, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 George Kruis, 6 Chris Robshaw, 7 Teimana Harrison, 8 Billy Vunipola Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Matt Mullan, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Joe Launchbury, 20 Courtney Lawes, 21 Jack Clifford, 22 Danny Care, 23 Elliot Daly.
