Eddie Jones

Nine Fijians are part of the squad with four in the rehab and train on squad groups.

Jones has named a 34-player squad for the Rugby Championship which also includes Rob Valetini, Marika Koroibete, Suliasi Vunivalu and Mark Nawaqanitawase.

Samu Kerevi is in the rehab group with Langi Gleeson.

The train on squad have the likes of Filipo Daugunu, halfback Issak Fines-Leleiwasa and Serupepeli Uru.

Australia’s first Rugby Championship game is against South Africa at 3.05 am on the 9th of July.

The match was played at a ridiculous tempo from the off, with an onslaught of offloads and cross-field kicks from either side, which was what all spectators demanded given the players on show.

The pick of the tries was surely scored by Fiji and London Irish lock Api Ratuniyarawa, who finished off a team try with almost all of the star World XV back line, including Israel Folau and Semi Radradra, playing a part. But while locks were finishing free flowing attacks in this upside-down match, BaaBaas winger Adam Radwan was also on the end of a driving maul in the first-half as well.

Australia coach Eddie Jones is yet to finalise his staff or settle on his best squad but is convinced the Wallabies have more than enough time to transform themselves into World Cup winners by the time the tournament kicks off in France.

The Wallabies slumped to seventh in the rankings under former coach Dave Rennie but Jones said they could emulate South Africa, who became world champions for a third time at the 2019 tournament in Japan after years of struggle.

And that’s exactly what Woodward managed done in his Daily Mail column.

The 2003 Rugby World Cup took just two sentences to mention his former colleague and media-sparing partner. Woodward’s criticism of Jones has become a running gag for many, but the jokes seemed to have been lost coach turned pundit.

The legendary coach was seen speaking with fans on Day Three of the World Series leg in Sydney, as he walked along the sideline of the hallowed turf of Allianz Stadium.

Rugby Australia made the bold decision earlier this month axe coach Dave Rennie eight months out from this year’s World Cup in France, and replace him with Eddie Jones.

Jones, who coached the Wallabies to a World Cup Final in 2003, is coming off an unsuccessful campaign with England – having been sacked by the RFU following the Autumn Nations Series.

The incoming Australian coach has five Tests and eight months to figure out his preferred World Cup squad after Dave Rennie was sensationally axed on Monday.

Rennie himself was still tinkering, particularly in the spine, with a 44-man squad in camp last week not including veteran five-eighths James O’Connor or Bernard Foley.

Japan-based Cooper was there on the Gold Coast alongside young Super Rugby Pacific pair Ben Donaldson (Waratahs) and Noah Lolesio (Brumbies).

"I think we've got plenty of time," Jones said on Nine's Today Show after Monday's shock announcement of his return to coach Australia, at Dave Rennie's expense.

"(1991 World Cup-winning coach Dwyer) always used to say, 'if you can't change a team in a week, you can't coach'.

"We've got more than a week, so let's hope I can coach."

Still in England, Jones will return to begin in his role later this month and also run the women's Wallaroos program, the five-year deal set to carry him through a British and Irish Lions' visit in 2025 and a home World Cup in 2027.

That was a few days before Jones's England side famously beat the All Blacks in a World Cup semifinal, dumping them out of the tournament.

Because of the All Blacks' and England's scarcity of fixtures, Jones didn't get another chance to have a dig at New Zealand till late last year, when somehow his side came back from 25-6 down with 10 minutes left to tie the scores at fulltime. Had Marcus Smith not sent one conversion wide, it would have been remembered as one of the greatest English victories ever.

On Monday morning, Dave Rennie was sacked as Wallabies coach following an underwhelming three-year stint as national mentor — his win percentage of 38.24 was the lowest of any Wallabies coach with more than 30 Tests.

Jones was unveiled as Rennie’s replacement, set to lead the Wallabies through to the 2027 World Cup on home soil. He officially starts the new role on January 29.

Jones has signed a five-year deal and will start on January 29, with Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan confirming the news in a statementon Monday morning.

“It is a major coup for Australian Rugby to have the best coach in the world return home to coach the iconic Wallabies and to oversee the Wallaroos program,” McLennan said.

“Eddie’s deep understanding of our rugby system and knowledge of our player group and pathways will lift the team to the next level.