Rugby World Cup: key match-ups to determine Wallabies, England blockbusters

BACKROW battle, scrum wars and golden boots. We look at the five key areas that will determine the do-or-die Australia-England pool clash at Twickenham.

Fiji's Netani Talei is tackled by Australia's David Pocock, right, and Michael Hooper during the Rugby World Cup Pool A match between Australia and Fiji at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2015. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

THE magnitude of this titanic Australia-England pool clash is such that the Rugby World Cup is over for the losing side.

It’s clear-cut for muddled hosts England if they drop a second game in the Pool of Death but it may be just as terminal for the Wallabies if they stumble.

Sure, the Wallabies will have a second chance of qualifying for the knockout stages a week later in the pool decider against Wales.

NUMBERS GAME: Wallabies v England

KEY MEN: Moore, Foley your country needs you!

But who will be queuing up to back a team to go deep in the tournament if stage fright and their first major test trips them at a pulsating, sold out Twickenham early on Sunday morning (Australian time)?

Momentum ... gone.

Here are five of the key areas which will decide this riveting clash.

1. BACKROW BATTLE

David Pocock, right, and Michael Hooper must be at their savaging best.

The “Pooper” combo of David Pocock and Michael Hooper is exceptional and full credit to coach Michael Cheika for believing that getting two of his very best forwards on the field was more important than a little more balance. To hell with them both being openside flankers.

English skipper Chris Robshaw wasn’t picked for the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia in 2013.

He didn’t miss out because he wasn’t a fine player. He missed out because he wasn’t a true No. 7 to deal with one of the Wallabies real strengths of swiftness onto the ball at the tackle and sideline-to-sideline mobility.

The trick for the Wallabies is to keep up the tempo of the game to maximise the Pocock-Hooper advantage.

The English will want to make it a slog and the slower the game the more the English backrow of Robshaw, Tom Wood and Ben Morgan are on level terms.

2. NERVE

The Wallabies throwing the ball three or four passes to the left from the kick-off is no longer a surprise tactic. It might just be dumb.

The Wallabies will attack and have a real crack. They know their identity and will be relentless. It just has to be smart as well.

If there is a stage for fullback Israel Folau to prove he is one of the stars of this World Cup this is it with a gliding 35m run through two tackles for a try.

The English haven’t yet worked out how much they are prepared to gamble. Owen Farrell is a more kick-first No. 10 option that George Ford. It will be percentages, grinding, power-based and scrum-based. We could have guessed that 12 months ago. It doesn’t make it any easier.

3. GOALKICKING

Owen Farrell is a better goalkicker than Bernard Foley at Twickenham. It’s as simple as that so a close, close game is to England’s advantage.

THE SCRUM AND THE REF

Owen Farrell’s boot could determine the contest.

They are the same thing. French ref Romain Poite has no patience with a dud scrum which is why he has belted the Wallabies before, most notably in the deciding Lions Test in Sydney in 2013. Prop Ben Alexander was in the bin by the 25th minute with a yellow card so swiftly did Poite get sick of him at scrum time.

The Wallabies scrum has improved considerably but the English have spent forever working on ways to smash Australia here.

Poor concentration for even one or two scrums or when second half replacements are made will be seized on by the English.

Poite might even whistle a penalty against English loosehead prop Joe Marlar for boring in.

Former top ref Jonathan Kaplan certainly thinks that is due after tweeting: “I’d like to see if the England pack is square on the loose head side ... just the once.”

If the Wallabies get their handling spot on and knock-ons are kept to a minimum that is the best way to reduce the scrum as a factor.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, a battling former Sydney University lower grade forward, will have to reverse his no random knighthoods policy if the gold scrum fires.

It should be “Sir Mario Ledesma” immediately if the Argentinian scrum doctor works the desired miracle.

Will Genia’s running game can spark the Wallabies to life.

4. X-FACTOR

Rather than Israel Folau, it’s halfback spark Will Genia who can turn this match with a ruckbase dart or scoot. He was man-of-the-match on his first visit to Twickenham against England in 2009 when he scored a try. An encore, thank you.

England wingers Jonny May and Anthony Watson are electric. May’s solo try against the All Blacks last year torched the world champions like no winger I’ve seen. The issue is whether England have any plan to involve him.

5. MATCH DAY ATTITUDE

Players routinely hate the media for week-long pummellings after bad defeats like the English crash to Wales but coaches deep down love them.

England coach Stuart Lancaster may have no clue how to get his side up for this giant game but he doesn’t have to worry because the English media have done it for him.

The English are in backs-to-the-wall, desperate mode and it makes them doubly dangerous.

How do we know? Well, the Aussies play best with that mentality too as shown by bouncing back after chastening defeats by the All Blacks or other sides.

England would have this game won on that mental edge but for the wonderful fact that Cheika has a mad dog streak. There has been no gibberish about tapering and relying on players to get to the right pitch on the day.

He has knocked the softness out of the Wallabies and built their physicality and mental edge day after day, week after week for just this sort of no-holds-barred match.

Cheika’s approach over the past few months is why the Wallabies will win by six points.

Originally published as Rugby World Cup: key match-ups to determine Wallabies, England blockbusters