Wallabies coach Eddie Jones stars in new World Cup ad: ‘We’re not going to France for the croissants’

Eddie Jones stars in a new ad campaign which capitalises on the belief that the Wallabies have ‘no chance’ in France | WATCH

Wallabies coach Eddie Jones plays a starring role in a new commercial for the rugby World Cup. Picture: Getty Images

Eddie Jones has promised the rugby World Cup will be a “smash and grab” job, but if you ask around most will tell you the lowly ranked Wallabies have “no chance” of becoming champions this year.

Jones has taken that lack of belief in the Wallabies and run with it in a new World Cup advertising campaign.

The new Wallabies coach is front and centre of the Cadbury and Rugby Australia advertisements which feature him dealing with discouraged local rugby fans.

Jones, who ad-libbed and changed a couple of lines in the scripts, in one of the advertisements dryly states to his barber trimming his hair; “mate, we’re not going to France for the croissants”.

Another advertisement features Jones door knocking a suburban home to canvass a family on their opinion of how the Wallabies will do at the World Cup in France. The teenage son answers the front door.

“Dad there’s a bloke who reckons the Wallabies are going to be World Champions,” says the teenage son.

“What? This year in France?” Says a disbelieving dad. The dad cites the Wallabies lowly world ranking and that it’s being played in France.

“You can tell him from me, the Wallabies, have no chance,” the dad says.

The son repeats to Jones that his dad thinks the team has “absolutely no chance”.

“Perfect,” Jones says.

“Who’s this for?” Asks the teenage son.

“The Wallabies,” Jones replies. “We love proving dads wrong.”

In the other ad a barber, who works in the Tough Luck Barbershop, is searing in his observations of the Wallabies World Cup hopes. “Wallabies, world champions; big call,” the barber says to Jones as he clips his hair.

“Yeah mate,” says Jones.

“The French have the best player in the world, what’s his name?”

Wallaby great Mark Ella, who is waiting for a haircut in the barbershop, pipes up and says; “Dupont”.

Jones at Wallabies training this month. Picture: Getty Images

“That’s the one Anton Dupont,” the barber says.

“Useful,” says Jones.

“Wish you had more of those, hey,” the barber says. “Wouldn’t want to be in your shoes mate.”

The barber then asks Jones if “you blokes” think they can win the whole thing and it’s then the Wallabies coach makes the quip about not going to France for the pastries.

The tagline for both ads is “where there’s a Wallaby there’s a way” and was dreamt up by the awarding winning agency Revolver.

Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh, a former Wallabies captain, who played under Jones noted the coach wasn’t acting.

“I like the fact that everyone else in the advertisements are acting, but he‘s not,” Waugh said, laughing.

Rugby Australia chair Hamish McLennan said the ads were dreamt up after Italy stunned Australia with a 28-27 win in the Autumn Nations Series late last year, their first ever win over the Wallabies.

Revolver production boss Mike Ritchie and McLennan met up after the match and dreamt up the advertisements.

Wallabies great Mark Ella also makes an appearance in one of the TV commercials. Picture: Getty Images

“Mike was is Florence with myself and Darren O’Brien from Cadbury after the Italy loss, and while we drowned our sorrows, I asked Mike for his advice on how to reposition the Wallabies leading in to the rugby World Cup in ‘27” McLennan said.

“It was there we agreed with Cadbury we’d collaborate on a new way forward and to break the mould”. “We don’t have an agency, so to tap into the creative minds of one of the worlds best production companies (Sydney based Revolver) made total sense”

Ritchie said the end result was something “unique”.

“I have known Hamish for a long time and when he wants to do something it happens. Simple.”

“After that game in Florence, I quickly brought in Revolver director, Richard Bullock, who has a massive background in sports marketing with brands such as Adidas and On Running. We agreed on the strategy, Hamish introduced the ideas to Cadbury and he got Eddie on board.

“The outcome is something pretty unique for sport in this country, they are honest with underlying confidence and we think they are bang on for the Wallabies“