Eddie Jones orders England to play ‘bodyline rugby’ to smash Australia

ENGLAND are preparing  to smash Australia’s  ‘fire-breathing’ stars in the battle for Brisbane.

Red Rose boss Eddie Jones has told his tourists to bash-up Michael Cheika’s pumped-up players in the First Test at the Suncorp Stadium.

And the ex-Aussie chief hopes his blossoming charges will send the  Wallabies hopping mad by crushing them in their own backyard for the first time since 2010.

Jones (right) said: “Every good English side, whether it’s in cricket  or rugby, they want to smash people.

“Australia will be breathing fire. They don’t care because all they want to do is make a physical  statement.

“That’s how Cheik wants to play the game.

“It’s going to be a whole  different ball game.

“Australia’s going to be absolutely rampant and this is  the first Test they have played with expectation  on them.

“Knowing Cheik, this may be one of the advantages we have, we know what their team’s going to come out and do.

“Winning would be massive. It would make the world stand up and say: ‘Maybe England are trying to do something different now’.”

And the no-nonsense coach is eager for his men to adopt the same  aggressive tactics that England’s cricketers used against the  Aussies in the 1932-33 series.

He said: “We’re going to play Bodyline rugby.

“We’ve got an opportunity to break into the top three sides in the world.

“You don’t get any better than playing Australia or New Zealand at home.

“So let’s swing the bat and see how we go.”

Only three English sides have won Down Under — but the record in Brisbane  makes for horrifying reading. With NO wins in Queensland and the last two matches ending in a 51-15  defeat in 2004 and a 76-0 thrashing in 1998.

But Jones warned: “England have got a growing confidence.

“I see the side day-in day-out grow a little bit. The leadership of Dylan Hartley has been influential.

“The guys are stepping up to  support him. There are baby steps.

“Saturday night is a big test for us. Australia are by far the best side we will have played and we will find out where we are at.

“We’ve got to have a different mindset and a different way of how we play the game against Australia, to change history.

“So Bodyline is a statement of  how we are going to do things  differently.”

And Luther Burrell, 28, has the chance to exorcise his World Cup and Six Nations demons after a year in the rugby wilderness.

The inside centre was  told he had to shift more than a stone by Jones and ditched the junk food.

Northampton’s star added: “I saw Eddie’s quote that I came into  the Six Nations camp grossly overweight.

“I had a laugh about it with the lads and got some stick about it.

“But I went back, managed to lose 8kg of what Eddie probably thinks was fat but it’s lean muscle.

“It was tough but it just meant laying off the  chocolate and pizzas.  I was on the bike at 6.30am doing extra sessions and shedding as much as  I could week by week.

“To be here and playing Australia, it’s a bit surreal but it’s so exciting.

“It’s something I don’t want to let go of again, it’s a special moment and a chance I want to take with both hands.

“I’ve always had the hunger, coming from what I have  to get here, this is something I don’t want to ever want to let go of.

“I will always have that hunger to represent my country. I know it doesn’t last for ever.”

England have left nothing to chance and plan to bring Australia’s 6ft 10in debutant Rory Arnold, 25, back down to earth.

The giant lock’s physical attributes will be used to try and steal key line-out ball from skipper Hartley — but  England are aware of the danger.

Scrum coach Neal Hatley said: “He poses a definitive threat.

“We have watched some of his stuff and he will be hard work to work around.

“But we have put things in place to hopefully sort that out.

“We’ve worked ridiculously hard, it will be confrontational, we are expecting it to be  tough and  hopefully that will set the platform.”