Horner: Wolff better back off
EDDIE JONES put the boot into his England squad after watching them make history – claiming none of the players would make a World XV.
Jones likes keeping his men on their toes but he was taking it a bit far after chalking up yet another win to end the year undefeated. England certainly earned their beer after this one.
The Red Rose boss is a hard man to satisfy – this was England’s 14th win on the spin, and their 13th in a row on the Aussie’s watch and he still had the hump.
Desire
The run puts them up with Martin Johnson’s heroes of 2002 and 2003 and this is their first undefeated calendar year since 1992 when Will Carling’s outfit played just six games.
Ben Youngs did his best to get into a global team with a stunning performance from scrum-half and Courtney Lawes and Jonathan Joseph put in huge shifts.
England were under the cosh for half an hour and Twickenham was fearing the worst but they pulled it back and by the end were running away with it.
They racked up their most points against the Aussies at HQ and made it 4-0 over the Wallabies this year.
Still not enough for Jones who reckons they are nowhere near Johnson’s crew and the boss only has eyes for the next World Cup.
Jones said: “Just because we have won 13 games there is not one player who would be automatically picked in a World XV – but we are heading in the right direction.
“The 2003 side were a much better side than we are at the moment. They had a very consistent scrum and line-out. We don’t have that yet but we are getting there. We have got until the second of November, 8pm Japan time, 2019, to get ready and that is what we are aiming at – we have got to be at our best that night. It is 1,020 days. Every day counts.
“We are only the No.2 team in the world and we want to be No.1. We have got a long way to go. And we are hell-bent on achieving that.
“We have got the talent here. It is just whether we get the desire and cohesion right.”
Jones was mocked as a clown by one paper Down Under ahead of the game but had the last laugh as his side played rope-a-dope for 20 minutes then hit the Aussies with four knockout punches.
After manning the barricades for the first quarter England were lucky to be in the game. Centre Tevita Kuridrani, twice, and prop Sekope Kepu both had scores chalked off by the TMO.
After 15 minutes, England had put in a staggering 57 tackles. They were being mauled by the Aussies but fought to stay in it.
Yet, there is a new confidence about this England side.
Mugs
Rewind to Brisbane in the summer when they were 10-0 down but went on to win and there was the same feeling here. Jones’ side were down by the same margin but no one panicked.
Owen Farrell’s hack through was picked up by Joseph and kept England in touch. When Joseph put Marland Yarde through it was game on after the break. Then England ran away with it.
Youngs made mugs of the Australian defence with a dummy off a quick penalty and Joseph rounded it off with an interception score. CHRISTIAN HORNER has issued a “hands off” warning over his star drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo as Mercedes look to solve their driver crisis.
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff will tomorrow begin the search to replace newly-crowned world champion Nico Rosberg following his shock departure.
But Red Bull boss Horner killed the idea that either of his drivers could switch camps stone dead – whatever the price.
“Our drivers are both on long-term contracts,” he insisted.
Dutch driver Verstappen, 19, and 27-year-old Australian Ricciardo are both thought to be committed to Red Bull to the end of 2018, with more options following that date.