“Their first game is up against a team that has been undefeated throughout the Six Nations, there will always be rust in that first Test match for a team and that’s what the Wallabies will be facing”, he said.
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Those three were all guaranteed spots on the plane to Australia this summer and if you throw in Alex Goode – the Premiership player of the season – and Marland Yarde then Jones’ cup runneth over in the backfield. He hasn’t called me fat or bald or anything like that – he hasn’t been nasty. “I think history’s proven it’s not good to fight a war on two fronts”, Cheika said, sharing some World War II knowledge on the anniversary of D-Day. He’s just doing what he thinks his team needs, so that’s what he’s doing to support his team. His team might need this obviously.
“It’s only normal. We look at it a slightly different way”. We’re working internally around our mental strength.
“Chris [Ashton] is a great try-scorer and a great player, he’s been playing some of his best rugby and he’s a player who keeps improving”, said May, speaking at a CBRE All Schools programme celebration event at Twickenham.
“To be honest, I want to dedicate all the energy to our guys and make sure I’m doing my job properly here”.
‘We have to win the first one – that’s what the series is about, the first Test, ‘ Jones said.
“It’s really setting up to be a good series and that first game at Suncorp’s going to be a lot of hype around it”.
While the hosts will be favourites, having reached the final of the Rugby World Cup past year, Australia must be wary of an England side in excellent form.
“Playing Origin means you can cope with the physicality of the most physical game in the world and you have the ability to handle the pressure of Test rugby situations”.
“We’re all a group of players continually striving to improve, and they’re now doing very well and raising the bar every time they play”.
“It’s there for us on a day-to-day basis”.
“And we have been able to use a part of his aura to help us build our own personalities and we should pay respect to that even though we don’t know the man and only know him from his boxing and his stature”.
“The boys have thought about the past and creating it as well as what we can add to it”.
Christian Lealiifano has also been named, and Cheika says Camp Wallaby is “blowing the snake charmer’s whistle” in the hope his pregnant partner gives birth over the weekend so he can join the team, having missed the entire Sunshine Coast camp.
“We want our physical aggression to be the absolute base of our game”.
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Cheika will trim his squad of 33 to 23 on Thursday, with prop Sekope Kepu, who has just returned to Australia after being released from his contract with French club Bordeaux-Begles, to be given every chance to prove his fitness.
