Will Joseph Scores Five Tries as England Rout Japan 78-15

His fourth try summed up the mood. He planted the ball over the line with a cartwheel. Japan flanker Ben Gunter then put a consoling arm around full-back Kazuma Ueda, who had been burned in a race to the corner.

"He is pretty similar to Immanuel Feyi-Waboso in the way he plays his game," former England wing Chris Ashton said on BBC Radio 5 Live. "He is just so fast. He doesn't look too fast in the first two steps and then he is just gone. He gets away from people."

Four years in the wilderness

Joseph won his only previous cap under Jones. In the summer of 2022 he was a teenage apprentice on England's tour of Australia and was thrown into the second Test as a last-minute replacement.

The years since have been bumpy. He struggled for game time and fitness at Harlequins after London Irish's bankruptcy forced him to leave his boyhood club. An auto-immune condition cost him the hearing in his left ear.

This season, at Gloucester, he has been one of an exciting group of young English-qualified backs. He has played on the wing and in midfield.

"It has been a challenging four years, but I have enjoyed the journey to get back here and I am happy all that hard work I have put in has paid off," Joseph said. "I have had a taste for it now and I can't wait to do it again."

Atmosphere and a warning

Junior tickets were on sale at £15, which changed the feel of the afternoon. The crowd was younger and louder than usual.

Jones had complained on BBC Radio 5 Live this week about being told when to make noise in the stadium. "Being a spectator and being told when to make noise is a bit funny," he said. The big-screen request for more volume appeared again during the rout.

Joseph's feat has a precedent. Henry Arundell toured Australia alongside him in 2022 and later scored five tries against Chile at the Rugby World Cup. Arundell has yet to convince in tougher Tests.

Joseph has those to come. New Zealand are England's next opponents, stung by their defeat by Wales, and head coach Steve Borthwick must decide whether to find out if Joseph can handle that step up.