Eddie Jones said England will look to “physically smash” his former side Japan at Twickenham on Saturday and advised them to “go to the temple and pray”.
Jones declared England have got their mojo back after an agonising one-point defeat by New Zealand and vowed to prove it against Japan. In an effort to mimic shorter preparation time for matches at the World Cup next year, England will not convene until Tuesday afternoon. Jones said he would not look to field a weakened team, instead calling on his side to be “absolutely ruthless”.
The coach claimed Japan had “been a bit cheeky”, seemingly a reference to a comment from their captain, Michael Leitch, in which he said, seemingly tongue in cheek: “We’ve been bullied a lot by Eddie, we’d like to give it back by beating England as a sign of gratitude.”
“If I was Japan I’d be worried,” Jones said. “We want to smash them, physically smash them, because I know they’re going to come full of confidence. I’ve heard some of the things they’ve said, they’ve been a bit cheeky, so look out.”
Asked whether he had any advice for Japan he said: “Pray, pray, pray. Go to the temple and pray. We’re going to be absolutely ruthless If I’m fired up, how are [the players] not going to be fired up? If they’re not fired up, they won’t be there. [Japan] are a really well-coached side. We’re taking it seriously and that’s why we have to be absolutely ruthless about the game. If you want to come out and watch a Barbarians game, don’t come out, stay home.”
Jones claimed England came within a whisker of beating the All Blacks with “half a side” – a reference to the number of players out injured, adding that Mako and Billy Vunipola will make a significant difference when fit.
“You can see we’re taking steps forward and we’ve got half a side out there with 400 caps,” he said. “To win the World Cup you need 800 caps and those things don’t lie. You put Mako and Billy back in and we immediately pick up [87 England caps].”
