Eddie Jones begins planning for next year’s World Cup in France with a game against the Six Nations leaders at Stade de France this weekend.
“My experience of the tournament, particularly when you’re playing in different countries, is that the more you go there and learn how to cope with the different tempo and rhythm of the week and the nuances of the culture, the better prepared you are,” Jones said.
“This is a golden opportunity for us. We’re playing a big game at Stade de France to have some experience of playing in Paris. Preparing in Paris is different to say Lille or Bordeaux or Nice.
“It’s a big city and you’ve got to learn to find the right rhythm to your preparations in the week. That’s the golden opportunity for us.
“We’re still waiting for confirmation of our training base in France for next year, but we’ve done some good preliminary work.”
#1. Marcus Smith
- Age: 23
- Club: Harlequins
- Position: Fly-half
