England will play ‘unpopular’ rugby to win the World Cup, insists Eddie Jones

The England head coach wants to play his own brand of rugby, says sides should stop trying to ape the All Blacks and doesn’t want his team to be like a second-rate iPhone

England are preparing for internationals against Argentina, Australia and Samoa (PA)

Eddie Jones says he is not afraid to make his England team play “unpopular” rugby in order to win the 2019 World Cup.

The England head coach, who named a 33-man training squad at Twickenham on Friday, is two years into a four-year reign he has long insisted has one sole motive: to turn his side into the best team in the world.

Standing in his way are New Zealand, a side who currently sit top of the world rankings and one which won plaudits for thrashing South Africa 57-0 last weekend.

As impressive as that result was, and as impressive as the All Blacks’ expansive attacking game is, Jones is adamant that England should not try to ape their "popular" style of rugby.

The only way for his side to overcome the All Blacks is by being different.

“Popular doesn’t mean it’s right,” Jones said. “Spending your whole life on your iPhone is popular, that doesn’t mean it’s right. There’s a certain brand of rugby that we need to play to win the World Cup and it’s not going to be popular. We’re going to play the rugby that suits us.”

Asked if he thought too many teams were trying to copy New Zealand, the England coach reached for a nearby reporter’s mobile to add an explanation: “One hundred per cent. Look at this Samsung phone. They’ve tried to copy the iPhone. The copy is never as good as the original… I probably shouldn’t say that. That’s the sponsorship gone!

“But [playing our own brand] is what we’ve done from the start and we will continue to play our own rugby.”