Tying the kangaroo down is becoming an English speciality at Twickenham. Two years ago Australia may have had only 13 men on the field when Dan Luger scored his injury-time winning try, but the first-half display by England's pack in last year's 21-15 victory was ruthlessly convincing.
A possible third success in a row over the Wallabies, though, comes with strings attached.
It may seem strange to query a team who scored three tries in beating New Zealand's All Blacks in a pulsating Test only seven days ago, but today's encounter with the world champions, as the head coach Clive Woodward suggested yesterday, is a significant game for both sides.
England, quite simply, find it harder to score tries against Australia than any other Test nation; and the Wallabies, beaten by Ireland last weekend, are keen to pose as potent an attacking threat as the All Blacks did last week.
If the rival coaches are to be believed in a week of decoy mania, it is a recipe for another thrilling spectacle.
From England's point of view, it is certainly time to demonstrate that their own back play is collectively slick enough to pierce the teak-tough antipodean screen in front of them.
In six games against Australia under Woodward they have managed only four tries and conceded 20, even if 11 of those were in the infamous 76-0 defeat in Brisbane in 1998.
The management, though, see it more as a tribute to the Australian defensive strength and, therefore, no great cause for alarm.
"I've no issues about the England try count because I know how we're playing and how we're training," insisted Woodward.
"Australia have the meanest defence around. It's brilliantly coached and well organised and they're a tough nut to crack. Even the most one-eyed person couldn't say England go out with any other attitude than to score tries."
In fact the Wallabies' defensive guru John Muggleton, who has two extremely sharp eyes, actually hinted at something similar this week, although so much spin has been circulating that fact and fiction have become almost interchangeable.
What is certain is that England have the players, such as Jonny Wilkinson, James Simpson-Daniel and Jason Robinson, to cause individual mayhem; the only lingering doubt is whether they can finish off the chances they create on the big pressure occasions rather than relying to excess on Wilkinson's deadly boot.
Add to that the legitimate concerns over the angles of running which served New Zealand so well last Saturday and it is a big game for those who occupy the English midfield.
"As far as decoy lines are concerned, Australia run them even better than New Zealand," warned Phil Larder, Woodward's assistant. "I also think defenders over here are cosseted. At the remotest hint of crossing it's a penalty and our players quite understandably get lazy."
Up front, of course, laziness is never an option. If the dropping of Lawrence Dallaglio to the bench proves anything it is that England are demanding a serious work-rate at all times, in which context the loss of Trevor Woodman is a heavy blow after his excellent game against the All Blacks.
The flip side, of course, is that the ever-reliable Jason Leonard is back in the starting line-up at front-row for the first time in a year and will be winning his 98th England cap.
"Jason thinks he should have been in the starting line-up anyway," Woodward revealed. "He's not there to make the numbers up."
As tributes go, though, it will take something special to beat the captain Martin Johnson's handsome accolade this week.
"There's not many international sportsmen," said Johnson, pausing for effect, "who've drunk as many pints as Jason."
England also feel Australia have named their best-possible pack and expect the Wallabies to be 20 points better than they were in the Lansdowne Road quagmire.
The captain George Gregan, having flown from here to maternity and back this week, is under pressure to produce a performance as impressive as his air-mile account and the Wallabies have yet to concede a try on tour.
"We've won these games for the last two years but this is the strongest Australian team we've played at Twickenham," stressed Woodward. "It's an important benchmark for them as well as us."
Eddie Jones echoed those sentiments this week, agreeing that a well organised defence may have won the last World Cup but is not guaranteed to secure next year's crown as well.
Injuries have prevented him from fielding the elusive Mat Rogers but in Stirling Mortlock he has an in-form, muscular presence who will give Simpson-Daniel's defensive resolve a serious test.
To watch "Sinbad", as Simpson-Daniel is known, tangling with Wendell Sailor will also amuse those who know their cartoon characters.
Woodward, meanwhile, is still adamant that today's fixture will have no direct bearing on next year's World Cup, yet his mind is already starting to drift towards the June games he has scheduled against the All Blacks and Australia in Wellington and Melbourne.
"I'm looking forward already to playing New Zealand in Wellington when the pressure will be on the team in black instead of the team in white."
Victory and a try or two are his twin priorities today.
England v Australia
15 Jason Robinson (Sale)
14 James Simpson-Daniel (Gloucs)
13 Will Greenwood (Harlequins)
12 Mike Tindall (Bath)
11 Ben Cohen (Northampton)
10 Jonny Wilkinson (Newcastle)
9 Matt Dawson (Northampton)
1 Jason Leonard (Harlequins)
2 Steve Thompson (Northampton)
3 Phil Vickery (Gloucester)
4 Martin Johnson (Leicester, capt)
5 Ben Kay (Leicester)
6 Lewis Moody (Leicester)
7 Neil Back (Leicester)
8 Richard Hill (Saracens)
Replacements: M Regan (Leeds), D Grewcock (Bath), L Dallaglio (Wasps), A Gomarsall (Gloucester), A Healey (Leicester), T Stimpson (Leicester), R Morris (Northampton).
15 Matthew Burke (NSW)
14 Wendell Sailor (Queensland)
13 Daniel Herbert (Queensland)
12 Elton Flatley (Queensland)
11 Stirling Mortlock (ACT)
10 Stephen Larkham (ACT)
9 George Gregan (ACT, capt)
1 Bill Young (ACT)
2 Jeremy Paul (ACT)
3 Patricio Noriega (NSW)
4 Daniel Vickerman (ACT)
5 Justin Harrison (ACT)
6 Matt Cockbain (Queensland)
7 George Smith (ACT)
8 Toutai Kefu (Queensland)
Replacements: A Freier (ACT), B Darwin (ACT), D Giffin (ACT), C Whitaker (NSW), M Giteau (ACT), S Staniforth (NSW).
