Eddie Jones: Wallabies going 'hell for leather' at Rugby Championship

Since returning to the helm of Australia, Jones has been open about the goal of transforming an underperforming team into world champions in less than a year.

Part of that is building momentum and support for the team so that when the Wallabies board the plane to France, there is complete belief.

"Nah, mate, in all frankness, we are going hell for leather," he told The Roar. "It's a sprint, you know. We've got a 1,200-metre sprint. Go to Pretoria, then the Bledisloe Cup, the Rugby Championship¦

"Without taking the games for granted in the pools, that will be the first game that we need to peak for, the quarter-final. So we will go hell out for the Rugby Championship because we need to win; we need to get people excited about the Wallabies again.

"If we are good enough, we win that, and we go in [to the World Cup] with a fair bit of confidence and a fair bit of support."

Jones confirmed that unlike the Springboks and All Blacks, who have both named expanded squads of at least 35 players, the Wallabies will stick to 33 for the Rugby Championship, not including any players recovering from injury.

Most teams have named bigger squads as part of their preparations, but Jones will remain with the same number that will be selected for the World Cup. He feels this will take the focus off selection and on to building a winning mentality.

"We gonna keep it small. I don't want this to be about selection, I want this to be about building a team that is capable of winning the World Cup. So we will only go with 33 and then any rehab players that we have," he said.

The experienced coach acknowledged the poor win rates for Australia and their Super Rugby sides over the last two World Cup cycles but still has his eye on winning absolutely everything this year.

"Let's face the facts, Australia has won 38% of their Tests since 2015. There are not too many players here who have done well. That's the reality of the situation. In Super Rugby, we have had one team who have won 50% of their games in the last eight years; the rest have won 40%," he said.

"The players need to improve. I'm not going to play the game, I'm going to create the environment for them to be better.

"The players are going to play the game, and they've got to accept that they are part of the problem and a massive part of the solution. If they are prepared to work hard and be smart about their preparations, more focused, then we can smash and grab, win the Bledisloe Cup, Rugby Championship and the World Cup. Imagine that?"

Jones' second stint with the Wallabies begins with an intriguing Test against the Springboks at Loftus Versfeld on July 8.