England to depart two weeks early ahead of 2019 World Cup

England coach Eddie Jones stated that his team will depart to Japan at least two weeks before the 2019 World Cup to help them acclimatize to the conditions.

The 2003 World Champions will reach Japan utmost on 6th September and will play a warm-up game leading to the tournament opener on 20th September.

On Tuesday, Jones and other backroom staff including Steve Borthwick set off to Japan to explore the options for his players ahead of the showpiece event in 2019. The 57-year-old insisted on providing an opportunity for his side to face teams similar to the ones on their pool in the warm-up game.

"We want to be in locations that are close to normal life, so we want our players to train hard and walk on the street and go for a coffee," Jones said.

"We're just finalising our pre-World Cup camps and where they will be. We'll look to come here around September 3-6 and there is a possibility of playing a warm-up game shortly after that.

"We are looking to play similar teams to the ones we face in the pool stages."

The former Japan and Wallabies coach along with his colleagues are visiting places in Tokyo, Yokohama, Miyazaki and Kobe to examine training bases and hotels that will suit England.

Jones also expressed his keenness on taking the squad to Japan next year to help them get the feel of conditions on and off the field.

"There are two years to go so we are getting to the very serious part of the build up to the World Cup," Jones said.

"People don't have the impression of Japan being a hot country. It's not seen as a hot and humid country by foreigners.

"The English in particular describe Japan as the 'Far East' which is a lovely quaint old term.

"In Japan it's important to establish relationships in person. Everything needs to be done face-to-face so it's an opportunity for our staff to build key relationships within Japanese rugby."