Second Test - Australia v England - Review

With England defeating Australia 23-7 in Melbourne and completing their maiden Test series victory down under, we take a look at a few of the key points from the encounter.

Jones among the very best

Eddie Jones has surpassed all expectations since replacing Stuart Lancaster in December. Eight wins in eight matches have yielded a first Grand Slam for 13 years and an historic series victory against one of the southern hemisphere heavyweights.

One more win against the Wallabies and England will also be celebrating a remarkable whitewash of a team that reached the final of the World Cup last autumn. His appointment has proved to be a masterstroke by the Rugby Football Union.

Jones schools Cheika

Among the leading contenders for the job vacated by Lancaster was Michael Cheika, who transformed Australia from a dysfunctional rabble into genuine pretenders to New Zealand's throne in under 12 months.

Twickenham opted for Jones and on the strength of the first two Tests it was a wise decision as Cheika has been out-thought tactically, out-talked throughout the phoney war and displayed a less assured hand in selection.

Farrell must start

England have long been perplexed by their midfield conundrum, but perhaps the series against Australia has offered clarity to Jones' thinking. George Ford and Owen Farrell have been outstanding since the experiment of picking Luther Burrell at inside centre was abandoned after 28 minutes in Brisbane.

England can not enter a Test without Farrell's startling accuracy from the kicking tee, while Ford is a fly-half of dizzying potential. Manu Tuilagi will enter the frame when fit and Jones likes Ben Te'o, but it is hard to see how the Ford-Farrell 10-12 axis can be broken up.

Robshaw redeemed

No one would begrudge Robshaw his moment of glory, the Harlequins flanker celebrating his 50th cap with a man of the match turn.

Robshaw's captaincy reached its lowest ebb during the World Cup, but he has been reborn under Jones and on Saturday he delivered his finest England performance, taking his customary high work rate to a new level. His place in the team was under threat when Jones took over, but yet again he has silenced his critics.

England dare to dream

The Jones project is ahead of schedule with England now positioned second in the world rankings. Only New Zealand are a more powerful force on the global stage and while toppling the All Blacks in a three-Test series would be beyond the Grand Slam champions at this point, there is now genuine hope that they could seize their crown at the next World Cup.