Tuilagi on the wing: Five times Eddie Jones swapped players positions

The great rugby statistician Stuart Farmer reliably informed us that Tuilagi played on the wing four times for Leicester, the last in November 2010. He's good to go then.

'I have seen Manu play on the wing and he can handle 12, 13, 11, 14 – he can handle all of those with aplomb,” Jones said.

“I see a powerful player who’s probably in the best condition of his career, who will add to the ball players we’ve got inside and will finish off the movements that we have. He’ll be able to roam on the field, play like a second or third centre.

“Last season Gael Fickou played on the wing for France and was outstanding. The game lends itself to a powerhouse centre so we’re looking forward to him playing there.”

However, the worst thing about this shock position switch is that it's quite normal compared to some others teased by Jones in the past:

An outrageous report back in January 2020 suggested that he was considering moving the Sale flanker to play at scrum-half. I thought either Jones had enjoyed way too much sherry over Christmas with his mince pies, or he has gone completely mad.  

The startling revelations, which were delivered with a mischievous grin in January 2019, were received by bemusement and responded to by a speechless media pack. Until this day, Jones insists Nowell could still make the transformation to the back-row.

The young Bristol Bears forward has been training to cover both outside centre and wing since his first call-up back in January as a result of Jones’s new six-two split among his replacements. It's now being reported he could start in the backline against Georgia this weekend.

The Gloucester winger, who only made his debut in the final round of the 2020 Six Nations, has been running as a flanker in training this week. Despite being the fastest England player of all-time, he's found himself taking part in line-out and scrummaging drills.

With Willi Heinz the only natural No 9 to join established first choice Ben Youngs in the 31-man Rugby World Cup squad, Jones revealed that Ford would be his cover in the position.