It was meant to be a compliment in Eddie Jones' famously impertinent style, only it didn't really work out that way.
The England coach's quip that the United States will play like "15 Donald Trumps" when the teams meet at the Rugby World Cup in Japan on Thursday has intensified the buildup to what should be a routine win for the English.
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England's Luke Cowan-Dickie slides across the line to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
England's Luke Cowan-Dickie runs to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game between England and Tonga at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, northern Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (Naoya OsatoKyodo News via AP)
England's Luke Cowan-Dickie is congratulated by his teammate's Owen Farrell and Willie Heinz, right, after scoring a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
England rugby coach Eddie Jones catches the ball during a training session before the start of Rugby World Cup in Sapporo, northern Japan Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. England will play Tonga on Sunday Sept. 22 in their first game. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda at the InterContinental Barclay hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Monday, Sept. 23, 2019, in New York. (AP PhotoEvan Vucci)
England rugby coach Eddie Jones kicks the ball during a training session before the start of Rugby World Cup in Sapporo, northern Japan Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. England will play Tonga on Sunday Sept. 22 in their first game. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
England’s Manu Tuilagi is about to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game between England and Tonga at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, northern Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (Masanori TakeiKyodo News via AP)
England's Maro Itoje runs at the Tongan defence during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
Jones, an Australian, said he only meant that the Americans would be fired up for their opening game.
England's Luke Cowan-Dickie slides across the line to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
"They're going to come out all guns blazing," Jones said, hardly making it any better.
U.S. coach Gary Gold didn't react, mindful that his squad — at No. 13 in the rankings and below the likes of Georgia — has no right to any bravado against the 2003 champion and No. 3-ranked team in the world.
Instead, the Americans' record at rugby's top tournament requires humility.
England's Luke Cowan-Dickie runs to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game between England and Tonga at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, northern Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (Naoya OsatoKyodo News via AP)
The Eagles have won one game in three previous Rugby World Cups and three out of 25 in their World Cup history. This year, they must face three Tier One nations England, France and Argentina in their first three games in Pool C.
The U.S. lost 28-10 to England in 2007 on the way to finishing winless and last in its pool, and the difference this time might be bigger. The U.S. also finished bottom of its pool with an 0-4 record at the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England.
"At this stage, with all due respect, we're not a good enough rugby team to be making comments or answers to questions like that," Gold, a South African, said when asked for his reaction to Jones' 15 Donald Trumps comparison. "I don't know what it means."
England's Luke Cowan-Dickie is congratulated by his teammate's Owen Farrell and Willie Heinz, right, after scoring a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
It's been a lively few days at the start of the World Cup from Jones, even by the cheeky Aussie's standards.
The Trump comment came a day after he was asked by a Japanese reporter to explain his reference to two of his England players being "kamikaze kids."
Jones, a former Japan coach who has Japanese heritage through his mother, said he used the term to describe young flankers Tom Curry and Sam Underhill because of their ferocious defensive work. Kamikaze is a sensitive word in Japan because of its reference to airplane pilots who flew suicide missions against U.S. and other Allied ships in World War II.
England rugby coach Eddie Jones catches the ball during a training session before the start of Rugby World Cup in Sapporo, northern Japan Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. England will play Tonga on Sunday Sept. 22 in their first game. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
And after England's first game against Tonga in Sapporo, on Japan's northern Hokkaido island, Jones said it was special to take rugby to a region unfamiliar with the game. Then, he added Hokkaido was "closer to Russia than you probably want to be." Russia is also playing at this Rugby World Cup.
Despite Jones' early exuberance in Japan, his team was patchy against Tonga, only secured a bonus point in the last three minutes and didn't provide him with a compelling start to the tournament following a compelling final warmup when England beat Ireland 57-15 and Italy 37-0.
Instead, England will aim to ramp up its performance against the Americans in Kobe on Thursday, although the four-day turnaround from the game against Tonga threatens to work against the English.
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda at the InterContinental Barclay hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Monday, Sept. 23, 2019, in New York. (AP PhotoEvan Vucci)
"The recovery process will be massively important and we've just got to get on with it," England scrum coach Neal Hatley said.
In contrast, while the English were taking on the hefty Tongans up in Hokkaido, the U.S. has been in camp at a resort on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa for two weeks preparing for its entrance at the World Cup.
That also seemed a strange choice, politically, with protests last year in Okinawa over the U.S.'s long-term military presence there, which dates back to World War II. Still, there's no indication that the Americans have been anything other than comfortable in Okinawa, with the Japanese hospitality at Asia's first Rugby World Cup described as excellent by teams.
England rugby coach Eddie Jones kicks the ball during a training session before the start of Rugby World Cup in Sapporo, northern Japan Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. England will play Tonga on Sunday Sept. 22 in their first game. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
Against England, the Eagles may get some help from many of their players having experience of England and English players. Four starters — hooker Joe Taufete'e, prop Titi Lamositele, flyhalf AJ MacGinty and center Paul Lasike — play in the English Premiership, as does reserve back Bryce Campbell. The U.S. has eight players in its squad attached to English clubs.
"We're trying to get better," said U.S. captain and wing Blaine Scully, who formerly played in England. "We've shown we can improve and we are improving. That's where our focus is."
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England’s Manu Tuilagi is about to score a try during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game between England and Tonga at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, northern Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (Masanori TakeiKyodo News via AP)
England's Maro Itoje runs at the Tongan defence during the Rugby World Cup Pool C game at Sapporo Dome between England and Tonga in Sapporo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. (AP PhotoAaron Favila)
