The heat Is on as England set for Aussie showdown

WORLD champions England face a door-die match in their final pool round against Australia on Wednesday after being upset by a devastating display from South Africa.

- BEN AYCOCK

Qualification for the last four is now out of their hands due to only the best-placed pool runner-up being able to reach the semifinals.

England had won six of their last seven meetings against the Junior Boks but traditional South African brute force combined with remarkable flair out wide saw them comfortably see off Mark Mapletoft’s men.

South Africa have only won one World Championship back in 2012, but this squad showed their title credentials to back up their 73-17 victory against Australia in their tournament opener.

England hooker Kepu Tuipulotu told The Rugby Paper: “This loss hurts but we’ve got one more game against Australia, so the best thing for us is just to park this right now, take all the good learnings, take all the bad learnings, and be positive about this outcome, then fly into next week against Australia.

“It was quite hot, the sun was out, but the second half brought some cooling. It was tough for both teams, but we'll get used to it and crack on for next week.