Wallabies plotting to crush Eddie Jones with former NRL winger Suliasi Vunivalu set to make debut 

Wallabies plotting to crush Eddie Jones and England’s new world order with former NRL speedster Suliasi Vunivalu set to make his cross-code debut

  • Series is on the line when Australia take on England at the SCG on Saturday
  • Cross-code star Suliasi Vunivalu, 26, poised to debut for Wallabies from bench
  • England – and former Wallabies – coach Eddie Jones only lost once to Australia
  • Remarkable record is from 10 tests, he declared his team ‘will make a statement’ 

The Wallabies are primed to crush the dreams of England and their coach Eddie Jones in Sydney on Saturday night – with cross-code star Suliasi Vunivalu also set to make his highly anticipated rugby debut.

Vunivalu, 26, switched to rugby after winning his second NRL premiership with the Melbourne Storm in 2020.

It hasn’t been an easy transition, but the winger who scored a staggering 86 tries in 111 games for Craig Bellamy’s men is ready to have an impact off the bench at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

He was also inspired after watching Queensland stun NSW to win the State of Origin decider on Wednesday at Suncorp Stadium.

‘I just like watching it, zoning in and watching players you played with, played against,’ Vanivalu said this week.

‘It made me pumped for the England game, we need to show that kind of intensity from the kick-off.’

Cross-code star Suliasi Vunivalu, 26, is poised to debut for Wallabies on Saturday versus England (pictured, playing for the Queensland Reds)

Fired up England coach Eddie Jones has declared his team will 'make a statement' versus the Wallabies

Fired up England coach Eddie Jones has declared his team will ‘make a statement’ versus the Wallabies

Vanivalu, who has battled a series of hamstring complaints in recent years which has curtailed his progress, has been named on the bench by coach Dave Rennie.

The Kiwi boss made a host of changes to his squad after a poor performance against the old enemy in Brisbane last start.

With the series on the line – and Jones only losing once in 10 tests versus the Wallabies since taking over as England’s coach in 2015 – it promises to be a frenetic 80 minutes.

Jones has also pledged to ‘make a statement’ in front of the sold out crowd.

He went onto add some spice to the decider, laughing off accusations from Wallabies scrum-half Nic White that England often resort to dirty tactics to win.

‘I hardly think he’s entitled to make that comment. ‘He’s the biggest niggler of all time, isn’t he? That makes me laugh,’ Jones said.

Australia's scrum-half Nic White is bracing himself for England's wind up tactics in the decider in Sydney

Australia’s scrum-half Nic White is bracing himself for England’s wind up tactics in the decider in Sydney

‘The boy who niggles everyone, complaining about niggle. That’s a bit like the pot calling the kettle black. 

‘Obviously he thinks that and his perception is reality, so he’s got a funny way of looking at reality. He’s just trying to look for something, isn’t he?’

It comes as Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper labelled his team a ‘resilient bunch’ and said it is all about building momentum ahead of the World Cup next year.

‘It’s there to execute now, we are happy with our preparation,’ he said.

‘We want a more complete game and to start better. We don’t think we’ve played as well as we can. We are a better team than what we’ve shown so far.’

***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk