Tally-ho! Jones orders Te’o to go fox hunting

EDDIE JONES has told Ben Te’o to go ‘fox hunting’ against Italy as England look to get their NatWest 6 Nations campaign off to a flying start in Rome tomorrow afternoon. Jones gave the former rugby league star his first England start against the Azzurri in the corresponding fixture at Twickenham last season. The home side, however, were flummoxed by Italy’s no-ruck tactic known as ‘the fox’, which created havoc at the breakdown. England eventually adapted to the ploy and managed to grind out a 36-15 victory, but Te’o got little opportunity to showcase his trademark power. Twelve months on from that fiasco, England coach Jones is ready to unleash Te’o on the Italians again. ‘We played him against Italy last year and the fox got him,’ said Jones. ‘The fox got him big time. So he wants to go fox-hunting this week. ‘We want to see him carry the ball. If there are no foxes out there, he might have a chance.’ Te’o, who started for the Lions in the first Test against New Zealand, has made a remarkable recovery to take his place in England’s starting line-up. The Worcester centre has been out of action since he injured an ankle in a European Challenge Cup clash with Brive on October 14 and then had surgery. Thr 31-year-old then took off to Brisbane, where he represented the Broncos in rugby league for six weeks on a self-funded rehabilitation programme to get himself in shape for the Championship. Despite having no game-time since mid-October, Jones has thrust the powerhouse midfielder straight into the action ahead of Jonathan Joseph, who is on the bench. ‘He had to do it if he was to play in the Six Nations,’ said Jones of Te’o’s gruelling rehab programme. ‘He had no choice. It’s nice to see but I didn’t get too excited. I didn’t advise him. He decided to do it and then we had a quick chat about it. He’s just a good rugby player. ‘He was a good rugby league player, he played at the highest level. He was ranked above Sam Burgess — that’s his stature in rugby league.’ The selection of Te’o aside, Jones has named an experienced squad boasting 689 caps for the opening assignment at the Stadio Olimpico, with captain Dylan Hartley set to make his 90th appearance in an England shirt. Trusted lieutenants Dan Cole, Mako Vunipola, Maro Itoje, Ben Youngs and Owen Farrell are all on board. England have been hit hard by injuries but Jones still has the luxury of naming four of the Lions who toured New Zealand on the bench with Joseph, Jack Nowell, George Kruis and Jamie George all primed to make an impact. Mike Brown, who has suffered from blurred vision in recent weeks, takes his place at full back after Jones resisted calls to install the more attack-minded Anthony Watson in the No 15 shirt. ‘It’s an ongoing debate,’ said Jones. ‘He’s a bloody good player, Brownie. He’s tough, he owns that high ball in the back field, he runs hard and he adds to the team’s defence. You’ve got to do a lot to put him out.’ In the injury-enforced absence of Billy Vunipola and Nathan Hughes, Jones has backed Exeter Chiefs starlet Sam Simmonds to fill the void at No 8. ‘He’s a good ball-runner, he runs good lines, he carries hard and he’s a strong defender. He does the basics of the game well, that’s what I like about him.’ For Te’o and Co, the time for talking is over. The hunting begins tomorrow.