Australia v England:ENGLAND CAPTAIN Lewis Moody has challenged his players to etch their names into rugby folklore by beating Australia in Perth today. England have only ever beaten the Wallabies on Australian soil twice in their history – in June of 2003 and then again five months later to win the Rugby World Cup.
Every venture to the Southern hemisphere since that November night in Sydney has ended in defeat, including three Tests on the bounce against the Wallabies.
Moody was part of England’s World Cup final side, coming off the bench to win the vital lineout that led to Jonny Wilkinson’s drop goal. “We know the Australians are an incredibly tough side to beat, especially over here,” he said. “We’ve only beaten them twice in our history, it’s a tough challenge and the boys know that. If you don’t get enough motivation from that, then you never will.
“The excitement in the camp is huge and now the players are desperate to get out there and give it our all. Now it’s up to us to perform.”
Australia are suffering an injury crisis that has robbed them of a first-choice frontrow and star inside centre Matt Giteau – but Moody was not understating the size of the challenge.
