One by one the traditional pillars of shared Anglo-Australian culture are slipping away. Dame Edna Everage has long since hung up her frocks and the final episode of Neighbours is due to be aired on 1 August. Almost the last of the old-school entertainers still working the room is Eddie Jones, back on familiar soil and as keen as ever to enjoy his farewell Test series as England’s head coach.
With no July tours scheduled next year before the Rugby World Cup and every chance of one-off, home-and-away Tests in a Nations League format becoming the future norm, the looming three-Test contest may prove to be the last of its type played by any England team in Australia. The constantly rolling narrative and competitive ebb and flow have played such a pivotal role in rugby’s heritage that the alternative had better be good.
