Wallabies plan to destroy Eddie Jones and England’s New World Order with former NRL speedster Suliasi Vunivalu set to make his cross-code debut
- The series is at stake when Australia take on England at the SCG on Saturday
- Cross Code star Suliasi Vunivalu, 26, is about to make his debut for Wallabies off the bench
- England and former Wallabies manager Eddie Jones lost just once against Australia
- Remarkable tally comes from 10 Tests, he says his team will ‘make a statement’
The Wallabies are ready to shatter the dreams of England and their coach Eddie Jones Sydney on Saturday night – with Cross Code star Suliasi Vunivalu also making his much-anticipated performance rugby Debut.
Vunivalu, 26, switched to rugby after his second win NRL Prime Minister’s Office Melbourne Storm 2020.
It wasn’t an easy transition but the winger, who netted an astounding 86 tries in 111 games for Craig Bellamy’s men, is ready to appear from the bench at Sydney Cricket Ground.
He was also inspired after watching Queensland stun NSW to win the state of origin decision at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday.
“I just like to look at it, narrow it down and watch players you’ve played with, you’ve played against,” Vanivalu said this week.
“It pumped me up for the England game, we need to show that kind of intensity from kick-off.”
Cross code star Suliasi Vunivalu, 26, is close to making his Wallabies debut against England on Saturday (pictured, playing for Queensland Reds).
Cheered England manager Eddie Jones has said his team will “make a mark” against the Wallabies.
Vanivalu, who has struggled with a series of hamstring problems in recent years that have hampered his progress, was benched by trainer Dave Rennie.
The Kiwi boss made a number of changes to his squad after a poor performance against old foes in Brisbane in their last start.
With the series at stake – and Jones has lost just once in 10 Tests to the Wallabies since taking over as England manager in 2015 – it promises to be a hectic 80 minutes.
Jones has also agreed to make a “statement” to a sold-out crowd.
He added some spice to the deciding sentence, laughing at 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 greatest nigger of all time, isn’t he? It makes me laugh,” Jones said.
Australia’s scrum half Nic White braces for England’s settlement tactics in Sydney decider
“The boy who bugs everyone and complains about nagging. This is a bit like the pot that calls the kettle black.
“Obviously that’s what he thinks and his perception is reality, so he has a weird way of seeing reality. He’s just trying to look for something, isn’t he?’
It comes as Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper called his team a “resilient bunch” and said it’s about building momentum ahead of next year’s World Cup.
“It’s there to be done now, we’re happy with our preparation,” he said.
“We want a more complete game and a better start. We don’t think we played as well as we can. We’re a better team than what we’ve shown so far.’
