Eddie Jones will announce his England squad to take on Australia in the first test later this week – but here is who I would pick.
15. Alex Goode
Mike Brown is a long way from the player of a few years ago, and Goode has had his best season to date. His experience at fly-half offers England a second playmaking option, which would be vital should Eddie go with my centre combination…
14. Anthony Watson
Absolutely no debate here – Watson has been England’s best winger and all round best finisher for some time. Every game he plays he seems to look more dangerous. Brilliant under the high ball, too.
13. Jonathan Joseph
Joseph needs a big tour. He hasn’t been at his best this season, and has Elliot Daly and Henry Slade breathing down his neck. That said, those with short memories should remember how devastating he was in the 2015 Six Nations. A return to that form, and he is still England’s best option in the 13 shirt.
12. Ben Te’o
Jones clearly likes big men in the number 12 shirt, and with Goode offering playmaking options from fullback, there’s no need for a ball player in the centre. Te’o has had two sublime seasons at Leinster, and whatever you think about him being eligible for England, the fact remains that he is. His gainline threat should create the half a gap for Joseph that wasn’t opened up in the Six Nations with Owen Farrell in this shirt.
11. Jack Nowell
Not an out and out finisher, but a grafter and a player that loves to get himself on the ball as much as possible. He hasn’t always reproduced his Exeter form in an England shirt, but at the moment he remains one of England’s top wingers.
10. Owen Farrell
This season has seen Farrell add an adventure and an abandon to his game, and allied with his dead-eye kicking from the tee, it has elevated him to one of the best fly-halves around. He hasn’t had a chance at 10 under Eddie Jones yet, but given that George Ford continues to falter, this must surely be his chance.
9. Ben Youngs
Expect both Youngs and Care to get a start on tour. For the first game, the Leicester man should keep his place, due to his better kicking game. He is also a threat around the fringes, although he could do with a game in which he doesn’t spray a couple of passes over his fly-half’s head – it’s becoming a rather conspicuous part of his game.
1. Mako Vunipola
Once Joe Marler ruled himself out, there was no real debate here. Vunipola is another of the all conquering Saracens contingent, and while he has always been a brilliant carrier, his scrummaging has come on leaps and bounds.
2. Dylan Hartley
Hartley may be the single most important addition to this side from the one that capitulated against the Wallabies at the World Cup. He adds solidity at the scrum, and the England lineout has returned to being one of the most consistent around. Plus, he’s just a bit of a d*ck on the rugby pitch, and to be brutally honest, you need a bit of that if you’re going to win in Australia’s back yard.
3. Dan Cole
Dan Cole has played an awful lot of rugby this season, and with two hugely inexperienced understudies, he’s going to have to play the majority of the tour too, you’d imagine. He’ll have revenge on the brain after the World Cup loss, that was anchored by Australia’s dominance at the scrum.
4. Maro Itoje
Rumoured to be starting at six, which I can understand given the propensity of quality locks, but let’s just let Itoje do his thing in his best position for now, shall we? He’s been so good at lock for both Saracens and England this season – why disrupt that?
5. George Kruis
The lesser-heralded half of the Krutoje partnership, but every bit as important as Itoje, not least at the lineout where he has, under the tutelage of Steve Borthwick, become England’s guru. Allied with an insatiable workrate and snarling physicality, he is one of England’s best players.
6. James Haskell
Haskell gets the nod at six ahead of Robshaw for the same reason that Hartley is so crucial – he’s not very nice to play against. He’s not going to set a game alight, but his physicality was excellent during the Six Nations.
7. Jack Clifford
Clifford is the closest thing England have to Michael Hooper. He is absolutely rapid, as he showed with his try against Wales – what he needs to add to his game now is the kind of controlled mayhem that Hooper exudes at breakdowns. On the hard tracks in Australia, against a mobile opposition, Clifford absolutely has to start.
8. Billy Vunipola
Last but not least, Vunipola will bring to the Australia tour what he has done consistently over the past year – a human bulldozer on the gainline, he’ll skittle defenders and hopefully create holes for others to run through. The only concern for England is this: where is his competition right now?
Replacements
16. Jamie George - the Saracens man brings boundless energy from the bench, and his set piece work is excellent too.
17. Matt Mullan – a sublime scrummager who will shore up that area should Mako have any wobbles.
18. Kyle Sinckler – the opposite of Mullan. If England are dominating the scrum but want some impact in the loose, bring this man on.
19. Joe Launchbury – unlucky not to be starting given his sublime game against Wales, but all that energy will be valuable from the bench, too. You can’t break up Krutoje at the moment.
20. Teimana Harrison – had a relatively quiet debut, but his versatility is a great bonus on the bench. Long term, he will move into Haskell’s shirt.
21. Danny Care – we all know what Care will bring from the bench: a darting, sniping threat around the breakdowns.
22. George Ford – a toss up between him and Slade, but to be honest neither is in great form, and Slade’s lack of appearances at fly-half counts against him. Should Farrell get injured in the first minute, would you rather have Ford or Slade playing 79 minutes of the test match at fly-half?
23. Elliot Daly – if he comes on at 13, and finds himself against Kuridrani (who is very physical but doesn’t have the best acceleration), expect that devastating outside break to come to the fore.
What do you make of the above team? Feel free to share your own below.
By Jamie Hosie
Follow Jamie on Twitter: @jhosie43
Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images
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I start Brown over Goode. Certainly in the first game.
Brown
Watson
Daley
Te’o
Nowell
Farrell
Youngs
Vunipola
Cole
Launchbury
Kruis
Itoje
Clifford
B. Vunipola
I put Itoje and Clifford in the back row. Physical and mobile as it will need to be against the Aussies. I push Daley to start at 13 outside Te’o. Everything else is self explanatory!
Bench
George
Mullan
Sinckler
Lawes
Harrison
Care
Goode
Joseph
Pretty much the side I’d pick I think – it’s a toss-up between Haskell and Harrison for me, Hask has the experience but Harrison looked fresher, quicker and a bit more explosive v Wales, and for all the talk that he gave away some silly penalties (and he did) considering Haskell still does that despite having the best part of 70 caps means it’s a bit of a non-issue for me – you’ll get a few whoever you go with! Seems absolutely mad that Clifford is apparently not going to start when it seems he was picked during the 6N specifically with this tour in mind – as you say, in terms of raw attributes he’s pretty much the only flanker in the squad who can go toe-to-toe with Hooper and his pace & running game could become a huge weapon on firmer Aussie pitches. If they’re finding a way to accomodate Launchbury after his excellent performance v Wales then it seems odd not to do so with Clifford given he wasn’t far behind.
Sent too early – I have more inane ramblings to add! Only other change for me would be Care for Youngs – sick of Youngs’ indecisive dithering & hospital passes if he doesn’t have a sniff of the tryline. The best sides know their best 9, for all the talk of it being a 23-man game. I can understand why Jones went with only two in the 6N – both Care & Youngs have managed to accumulate 50+caps without ever truly nailing down the spot, and personally I reckon they’re both a bit soft, they let themselves drift as they know they’ll be back in soon enough if they’re dropped anyway. They desperately need some competition to shove a rocket up them, really should’ve taken at least one of Robson or Simpson (if he could’ve been convinced to ditch the 7s) to provide it. Stuck with it for now though. On the bench, Slade for Ford as he provides more flexibility and I’d toy with putting Yarde on over Daly as Slade can cover the centres, but in truth not really fussed – Daly can cover the back three if required.
Brilliant team – completely agree with the balance of the back line if playing a basher at 12 then need Goode at 15. I would also attribute a large amount of Farrel’s step up this season to the form of Goode, by all accounts his influence off the ball is huge, great communication and vision, provides a really good second set of eyes for the 10. Similar to how Wilko really needed Greenwood outside him, unless you pick Slade at 12 you really need a second set of quality eyes from 15. A lot of respect for Brown and he was a a huge part of the England rebuilding process but if we are to go to the next level in our attack then Goode is the man to take us there.
I would go Robshaw over Haskell – I don’t think his international career is over yet. Clifford provides enough carrying that we don’t need Hask for that element, Robshaw is growing into a quality quality 6 and will take his game to new level in Oz to avenge pain of World Cup – he can become a Scot Fardy option. Haskell on bench over Harrison, experience important down under.
Care just sneaks over Youngs for speed of service – despite Youngs better kicking game, with Oz already trying to slow our ball down, need a 9 who can get to the breakdown and scoop it away quickly.
JJ needs to find something, couple of half breaks vs Wales but Daly arguably would have been more explosive and made them full breaks. Daly deserves chance, 20 minutes off the bench not enough.
Seems like Eddie Jones is going to play Itoje at 6 and Launchbury with Kruis in the second row. That is a very abrasive pack and Itoje adds a bit more pace and dynamism. Eventually, one or both of Clifford and Harrison will break into the back row but Jones is preaching that the breakdown is the responsibility of the whole team and so far that has worked. Whether they get caught short on the faster pitches in Australia is another matter.
Not sure how people will feel about Ben T’eo coming straight in to the troubled inside centre slot. I haven’t seen anything of him. I’m not a big fan of Luther Burrell as I think he makes too many errors, is not a great passer and drops off tackles despite his bulk. Slade has to be in the team somewhere eventually. He can be our Aaron Mauger, Conrad Smith or Brendan Venter, the guy who makes space for others around him.
I agree with your call for Alex Goode at full back. Brown has never hit the line to create a break. He uses his robustness but doesn’t seem as effective as he was. Goode would create a yard or two for Watson and Nowell which will be enough to break the gainline and more.
Itoje may well be switched to 6 according to media reports from the training camp. Eddie might be engaging in a bit of double bluff but it wouldn’t be outrageous to play him there. I think Jones sees this tour as the opportunity to really see where England are compared to the SANZAR nations,who ,at the end of the day,are the benchmark in int’l rugby. By 2019 he will know who his five world class players are ( if they exist) and right now Itoje is the one who looks most likely.
Cannot agree with Te’o being in the team. For a start Burrell did nothing wrong against the Welsh. Then there is Sam Jones on the Saxons tour and Faz and Manu to fall back on. Daly deserves a run at 13 which,if Goode does play at f/back would give England three excellent kickers as well as an attacking threat from broken play and deft off loading.
Interesting bench. Mullan has an excellent chance to cement a place in the squad.I hope George gets plenty of opportunities to show his all round game. He is definitely the future at hooker.
Overall one win from three would be a good return and a strong platform to build on.
Agree Re Te’o. 12 is such a pivotal position that Eddie shouldn’t be so content to employ a stop gap there and if he does want one; I wouldn’t pick a 29 year old kiwi league convert over Burrell who had a fairly good game despite what seemed a quite clear lack of understanding between him and Ford. Te’o meanwhile was being made to look very ordinary against Connacht…
I see the logic of Goode if Te’o starts. If Farrell’s at 12, as I reckon EJ wants to stick with Ford, Brown starts.
You don’t want to move Itoje from the 2nd row but I don’t see what you lose by doing this. He’ll still be in the lineout, which would be even further improved with Launchbury in place of Robshaw, and he’ll still get around the field doing his thing. I say go for it.
Then a 4/4 split on the bench? Itoje covers 2nd row, Harrison covers back row.
George
Mullan
Sinckler
Harrison
Care
Ford
Slade/Daly
Goode/Brown/Yarde
If Joseph doesn’t show some of his best form in the first test, Daly or Slade have to have a chance.
Either a 4/4 split or you you could load it with back row firepower – whichever two of Clifford, Harrison and Haskell that don’t start come off the bench,, seeing as you could always move Maro to the second row if required, so either 5/3 with two back rows rather than a lock or 6/2. Two fresh flankers coming off the bench could be another way of narrowing the gap slightly between the English and Australian back rows.
Not seen much of Clifford but it’s not enough to have set piece dominance against Australia if you let Hooper et al dominate the post-tackle area. I would pick the back 5 combination most likely to compete at the breakdown.
As for 10 it seems to me that Farrell is a no brainier for me. Ford’s seems to have been struggling with his game for a while.
Have made my thoughts on Te’o and Itoje clear on the other thread. But at the risk of boring people by repeating myself:
Burrell over Te’o – leaving aside eligbility, Te’o has no international union experience. Is the first test in an important tour to Aus the place to get it? Burrell played well against Wales
Don’t move Itoje – play him in his best position. This kind of thinking gave us Tuilagi on the wing and Lawes on the flank
Other than that I’d play Robshaw and Clifford with Harrison on the bench.
And although he’s earned a chance to start, am concerned that Goode will be badly exposed by the speed of the Aussies. Certainly if he tries that weird little stuttering run he does, he’ll be hammered and turned over every time.
‘Burrell played well against Wales’
Did he? Or was he just ok, as usual? The try was good, beyond that I don’t recall much of an impact.
‘Don’t move Itoje – play him in his best position. This kind of thinking gave us Tuilagi on the wing and Lawes on the flank’
Not really the same. Itoje has played plenty at 6, we know he can do a good job there. Potentially better than 2nd row.
I’m prepared to be persuaded otherwise, but I thought he played well. He took his try well, provided a physical threat in the midfield and dealt very well with Jamie Roberts and the big Welsh runners.
Te’o would be a huge gamble at a 6 Nations level – let alone Aus on their own turf
I know Itoje has played a bit at 6 – so had Lawes. But I accept that Itoje is less of a gamble. Still, if blindside were his best position, Saracens would play him there. Don’t mess with things that are working extremley well. Leave him to develop where he is and continue his partnership and understanding with Kruis. We are not short of good blindsides and do not need to be forcing changes.
I think McCall may have said he sees Itoje as a second row, so your argument is sound. But then if he had Launchbury in his squad and looking at his best, he would probably accommodate him as Jones may do.
I’m not wedded to Te’o personally, but if we’re going for a hard runner at 12 I almost feel like we’re wasting time with Burell. He’s not going to hold that place down. Frankly I’d have given Sam Hill a go.
I would have liked to have seen Hill given a chance as well
Couldn’t agree more re Burrell; he scores one try yet doesn’t offer much else with a very one-dimensional playing style. Leaves the fly half short of options.
At the moment I don’t think Goode is any more likely to get hammered and turned over than Brown.
Goode offers a different attacking threat which is unpredictable, he passes the ball (something else Brown either can’t or won’t do) well, and is a back up kicker if Farrell gets crocked and Ford’s having a mayor.
All Brown seems to do nowadays is run straight into contact and hope he doesn’t get turned over. He is solid in defence, but that should not be an argument to start him any more. Brown’s slightly better under the high ball, but Goode’s positioning for kick defence is outstanding, and he’s a better tactical kicker due to his fly half experience.
I think the other argument for having Goode is his combination and understanding with Farrell.
When I played in the Championship, I asked a lot of the older, and younger lads on loan to us, what was the real difference between the levels?
To a man, they said being truly excellent at your job. It didn’t matter if you were a prop who could throw 30 metre passes off your weak hand, could run the 40 in 4.2 and cover every blade of grass. If you were a moderate scrummager, but excellent rugby player, you still wouldn’t get a sniff of a regular run of games.. I feel that has to be magnified at test level.
I used to argue with people constantly about picking your best 15 players – you pick the person who is bast at the job. Itoje shouldn’t be blending his international experience to become a reasonable utility forward, he should be amplifying his experience to be the best lock in the world. We have enough, proven, players capable of fulfilling the role in the back row, but are generally dis-satisfied because they aren’t individually great like Pocock etc…..
That’s why I feel Haskell gets unfairly slated. He is doing his role better than others at the moment which is to be fast off the line, killing attacks by taking space and being nasty in his carrying and defense. You also don’t accumulate 40+ caps by accident. Also, EJ rates him well and Michael Cheika’s comments on him were telling – labelling him one of England’s top 3 performers in the 6N. he is quicker than most people appreciate too – faster than Ewers and Robshaw, so would subsequently pick him over CR.
My analysis is that England can play rugby, providing they get their set-piece and their first phase attack right. That comes from a solid understanding of roles – see the above points as to how to do this.
I think my only two changes would be Care for Youngs (too many dodgy passes), and Hill for Sinckler.
Farrell is in the form of his life and should start at 10. As someone else pointed out having Goode back him up from 15 has helped him free up certain elements of his game. Their combination has been key for Sarries so why not utilise that for England.
Have to say I think it’s a real shame Eddie hasn’t taken Robson as an extra 9. I think he has been the best 9 in the Premiership this season. If not the NH?
Definitely Care for Youngs in my book. He looks so much sharper and gets his pass away more quickly and accurately. Farrell at 10. Surprised EJ has even taken Ford given his recent form. I´d leave Itoje in the 2nd row for the moment, but it is great to have three world class locks and Launchbury can do a great job off the bench. Agree with Pablito re Burrell and Te´o. This is not the game to give him a first cap. Open minded about Goode, but he has surely earned the chance to show how much he has improved. Would stick with Haskell at 6. I know I am in a minority, but Hartley is not even the best hooker at Northampton and I wouldn´t have him anywhere near an England team. He has been competent but largely anonymous and doesn´t have anything like the pace or drive of George. I think it is quite exciting that for the first time in years there are options in almost every position.
Haven’t crunched the numbers, but my gut feeling is we score more tries with Ford than with Farrell. Talk about his kicks, but we scored 5 tries against Wales – have to go back a long time to see the last time that happened (62-5 in that joke game in 2007?) We shouldn’t just discount that because he got the yips with the tee. If you score 5 tries and kick at 60%, you will still score at least 31 points which will be enough to win most games of test rugby.
If Jones starts Farrell at 10, and it is very hard to leave him out, then he has to judge him on more his kicking percentage. We still need to be aiming to play attacking, enterprising rugby and looking to outscore teams in tries and not just get the odd extra kick; but that obviously gives you the fallback option of if the other team consistently infringe to keep you in check, you punish them with the boot (see England vs Wales in the Six Nations for an example).
The question is therefore can Farrell orchestrate the attack as well as Ford can, and bring improvements in kicking and defence? I’d be tempted to say now is the time to give him a go, but Ford would be my long-term pick at 10, and I’d be wary of killing his confidence.
I’m guessing you may not have watched too much of Sarries this past season? Farrell has been playing attacking rugby with ball in hand. Beating defenders and throwing dummy passes, then flicking out wicked passes or putting in deft grubbers for attackers to run on to. Basically he’s been playing like Ford on form, but with a better kicking ratio.
Personally I don’t see the issue with Itoje at 6 – it isn’t comparable to Lawes at 6, it is closer to a centre playing 12 or 13. There is nothing in his skill set that suggests he would be a poor 6, he is more than quick enough (which was Lawes issue), and better at the breakdown than Robshaw anyway. If it benefits England to have Lauchbury playing over Robshaw (which it would), then I’m all for it.
To be honest, Robshaw would be below Harrison and Clifford in the pecking order for me anyway – and definitely below the Itoje option too.
Te’o over Burrell for me. Burrell is never going to be better than average as a test player – Te’o could well be more than that so we might as well give him a go sooner rather than later.
Spot on.
The team mostly picks itself. I may be wrong, but Eddie doesn’t seem that adventurous to me, so don’t see many changes from the team picked in the article.
As EJ seems likely(?) to go for Teo @ centre (arguably1 ‘batterer’ over another) & Jack @ 7, he’s unlikely to be much more ‘experimental, other than perhaps to play Itoje @ 6.
Therefore, don’t see the ‘unproven’ Goode under the high ball, to start @ f/back. I wouldn’t. Not @ test level when he won’t have his normal Saracens’ comfort blanket.
However, if England do start with Teo & Clifford, it’ll be their 1st (or almost in the case of JC) tests & AWAY from home! I know Teo’s been unavailable ’til now & I don’t rate Burrell as other than a R1er, so who else. Farrel? Prob not with his poss replacing the ‘shot’ Ford, so little choice I guess.
My pt is that Ed’s chucking 2 novices into the deep end into the lions’s den, 1st up v Oz! May’ve been better to have had a more est fetcher like Kvesic, as Oz will have 2 opensides & could well bring on a 3rd in McMahon. They risk being overrun here.
Better fwd planning ought to have been the order of the day for me.
Don’t know much about Te’o other than his background as i’ve never seen him play. I hope he has a bit more craft than a simple boshloader. Burrell gets a reputation as a simple bosh merchant but there are subtleties in his running lines which keep tacklers guessing. His try against Wales was a good example where he sold Biggar a wider line then arced his run to put himself through on a soft shoulder.
Itoje at 6 seems ok to me. We do need to nail down his position soon but I see him as having a skill set suited to the role unlike Lawes did when he played there
I’m hoping we see Clifford at 7 as I don’t think Haskell has the Speed/Endurance to play there for more than 20 in the heat against a strong poaching backrow
If I were making the decisions the team taking the field would read:
Vunipola, Hartley, Cole
Kruis, Launchbury
Itoje, Haskell, Vunipola
Youngs*, Farrell
Nowell, Burrell, Joseph*, Watson
Goode.
*Need absolute stormers if they are to prevent rotation with Care/Daly)
Mullan, George, Hill, Lawes, Clifford, Care, Slade, Daly on bench.
I know it sounds daft but I think Haskell could be our win condition. He’s our most experienced back rower and he played perfectly as a counter 7 in the six nations. He man marked our own carriers when we were in possession ready to clear out anybody roaming around looking for a sniff of the ball and rushed out of the line (with good timing) to put the first receiver under pressure and give the defence the advantage, garnering collective turnovers from the rest of the team. For all the laughs the mock “6 1/2″ shirts got somebody really ought to have got a “-7″ printed for Haskell. He very adequately negated numerous out and out 7s throughout the tournament.
Against a team with two 7s in the back row and two 10s in the backline, Haskell performing well could be pivotal. (There’s your England player to watch segment sorted for the upcoming Eng/Aus prediction article :P)
I then picked Itoje at 6 simply because I think his all court game compliments Haskell’s rather specified role better than any other player. A third proper lineout option should be a priority too considering it was the only area where we had any sort of ascendancy against Aus when they whooped us at the WC. Clifford and his pace on the hard sun baked tracks is an appealing option but I don’t think he can play with Haskell that way for lack of the sheer industry that most locks/Robshaw provide, best to keep him on the bench for now.
Jones is in the business of winning test matches and I feel that back five set of forwards gives us the best chance to do that against Australia. If you feel that strongly about keeping Krutoje intact then simply give Launchbury the 6 shirt. I wouldn’t say he’s any slower than Robshaw, nor is he less industrious, he’s probably better at carrying and winning turnovers/penalties in all honesty and still provides a third lineout option. It’s called a “pack” for a reason and regardless of the numbers on their back, swapping Robshaw for Launchbury isn’t going to homewreck any budding Sarries bromance.
Appears yarde will get the nod with Burrell and Farrell. No changes in the pack- source: telegraph
Not sure why we’re wasting a tour place with Ford. Woefully short of form and needs a break. We could have taken Cipriani or Myler instead, form 10’s who offer something more than kick it up in the air and hope. Care to start over Youngs and Joseph needs a stormer. His hat trick against a dire Italy aside he seems to be going backwards and technically way short of Daly who must be getting perplexed as to why he hasn’t started at least once recently.
Alan
Couldn’t agree more regds Cip for Ford, but England will only ever play the former if every other fly1/2 in the country has a broken leg! & Myler’s just another fly1/2 IMO.
For me it’s been a weakness in ‘talking’ up people like Ford, whose decision making is erroneous as well as poor in execution; i.e., to kick out of hand, or Farrell who is a stock club fly1/2 lacking innovation & who can’t control himself. What can either do that Cip can’t to change a game?
Care or Youngs? I dunno, take yr pick, but if Joe Simpson were about, he’d have been the unpredictable 1… & with GAS 2 burn.
Trouble for Daly is that he’s not really played before & Eddie won’t risk a rookie in midfield in his 1st real (SH AWAY) test. Lack of player management.