When Joe Cokanasiga was plucked from obscurity to tour Argentina last year, Eddie Jones was typically blunt as to why: “He’s big and he’s fast.” On Thursday – Cokanasiga’s 21st birthday – Jones handed the Fiji-born wing a Test debut and cited his immeasurable progress over the past 18 months. Truth be told however, the reason has not changed, even if the soundbite has: “He’s got power and he’s got pace.”

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For Jones craves more physical presence in his backline and while Cokanasiga’s early-season form for Bath backs up the idea that “there’s something a little bit special about him”, he has been pencilled in for a debut this autumn for some time. Jones has previously said he likes a workhorse on one wing, a speedy thoroughbred on the other but in his mind there has always been room for more muscle among his backs.

In his 33 Tests in charge he has managed to extract 16 minutes from Manu Tuilagi, so now, 10 months before the World Cup, he has turned to Cokanasiga in the hope he comes up on the rails between now and September. He is raw but his blend of bulk, speed and dexterity means he is worth the risk and this is in many ways the perfect match to test the waters. “It’s always handy to have one big winger that can dent a line and there aren’t a lot of those playing rugby in England,” Jones said. “We took him on the Argentina tour. We wanted to see what he had, which wasn’t much, at that time.

“He’d basically run out for training and was exhausted. But he came to [the training camp in] Portugal like a different guy. It was like someone had put a new person inside the same body. Now he has that strong desire.”

Cokanasiga is 6ft 4in and almost 18st. On Saturday, he is up against Kenki Fukuoka who is eight inches shorter, five stones lighter but identified by the England defence coach, John Mitchell, as “world class”. In other words, if Cokanasiga is out of position at Twickenham, Fukuoka is likely to take advantage. “This week is the right opportunity – and he’s going to be tested,” Jones said. “He’s got a nice ball sense, he can throw an offload out of the tackle and he can find the line. He’s not going to sit out there and wave to the fans, let’s put it that way.”

If the selection of Cokanasiga as one of 11 new faces makes obvious sense the irony is that it is not really a XV set up to “physically smash” Japan. The dual playmaker axis returns with Alex Lozowski coming in at 12, while Jack Nowell is many things, but a battering ram at outside-centre is not one of them. Courtney Lawes comes into the back row but at the expense of Sam Underhill, who surely would have benefited from another start in a position where Jones is crying out for continuity.

Maro Itoje probably does not need another afternoon at the coalface either, but putting those things to one side, there is much to like about the side Jones has selected and both rhyme and reason to his attempts to test his squad with a shorter turnaround in preparation for the World Cup. He is not so much experimenting then, rather contingency planning, as demonstrated with Nowell’s selection at No 13.

“It’s about adaptability, it’s about coping with what’s put in front of you,” Jones said. “We’ve just tried to raise the heat a little bit. At the World Cup, you have seen it on so many occasions, you need players to be able to play multiple positions. You don’t know what is going to happen and they are going to be tested.”

Ted Hill’s inclusion on the bench seems on the early side of his progression but he is surrounded by the cavalry if things are not going to plan, with co-captains Owen Farrell and Dylan Hartley ready to lead the charge.

Jones loves to spin the idea that being on the bench is not a demotion: “I really think in 10 years’ time you won’t be naming one to 15, you’ll name a squad of 23 and the way you put that on the field is your choice.” In Farrell’s case it certainly is not but Jones did hint Hartley may find himself undertaking a replacement role more often.

Quick guide England team Show Hide E Daly; J Cokanasiga, J Nowell, A Lozowski, C Ashton; G Ford, D Care, A Hepburn, J George, H Williams, C Ewels, M Itoje, C Lawes, M Wilson, Z Mercer.



Replacements: Dylan Hartley, Ben Moon, Kyle Sinckler, Ted Hill, Sam Underhill, Richard Wigglesworth, Owen Farrell, Henry Slade.



Of course, stress-testing and sushi nights are all well and good but it does not need pointing out Japan have history when it comes to springing upsets on these shores. But then, that kind of performance is precisely what Jones has tried to bait out of his former side because, as he points out, he gains little from “a walk in the park” and two spirited showings against South Africa and New Zealand have earned him the right to make such a bold team selection.

After all, it was not so long ago this was seen as a match that might have had plenty more riding on it.