Eddie Jones has warned his England side they need to be “bulletproof” in Japan after being handed arguably the toughest pool at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

England find themselves in Pool C, alongside France and Argentina, following the draw here on Wednesday, setting them up for a potential semi‑final meeting with New Zealand.

There was an air of familiarity about the outcome after a former captain Bill Beaumont drew the ball that placed possible problems in England’s way, less than two years after they were dumped out of the group stage in their own tournament after defeats against Wales and Australia.

“The thing that I struggle with, what I continuously struggle with against English rugby, is complacency. So if there’s any way our team can be complacent now, then we’ve got the wrong people,” Jones said. “Then it makes it an easy decision for me selection-wise. Because we’re going to have to be bulletproof in the World Cup – to get through to the final we’re going to have to be bulletproof.

“We’re going to have to play a number of different ways against different teams, and we’re going to have to be able to cope with it because the reality is … we’ve got four very tough games.”

Speaking in a city dotted with ancient Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, Jones joked that he was considering seeking divine intervention. “I’m going to visit the temples because I need to pray,” he said. “I need to pray really hard.”

Historic move as rugby residency rules changed to stem Pacific Island exodus Read more

England’s group is completed by two qualifiers, from the Americas and Oceania, with those places possibly being filled by the USA and Fiji or Samoa.

Asked if the draw had influenced his choice of pre-tournament warmup opponents, Jones said: “Not really. Again, we need to produce a bulletproof team that can play against any sort of team. Against Argentina and France you’ll be playing teams with big ball‑runners and we’re probably looking at a physical disadvantage in both of those games. They’re bigger teams than us, so we’re going to have to get better at being tactically smart and being more skilful, which is all part of the plan anyway.”

His New Zealand counterpart, Steve Hansen, appeared unconvinced that England were their biggest challengers to win the tournament – the first to be held in Asia. Under Jones England have won two successive Six Nations titles and equalled the All Blacks record of 18 Test victories in a row before losing against Ireland in Dublin two months ago.

“They’re one of [our rivals], along with South Africa, Australia and France,” Hansen said. “By the time the World Cup comes around any one of a number of teams could win the tournament. England are getting better and better all the time, but they’re in a really strong pool.

“It’s going to be interesting. Everyone is saying that Pool C is the pool of death and Pool B is easier. But you’re in what you’re in. England will be like us – looking forward to getting here.”

Beaumont, who opened the event as chairman of World Rugby, said: “It’s a tough draw for lots of teams. Certainly [England and Argentina] are teams that know each other very well – but a World Cup game held on neutral territory is very different. England will be cautious, given how well Argentina have played in the last three World Cups.”

The Pumas reached the semi-final at the 2015 World Cup and have been touted as a potential threat to top-tier teams.

To improve their chances of banishing memories of their ignominious exit from the group stage in 2015, England will have to acclimatise to potentially tricky conditions. Much of the country is still humid in late September – a month also known for occasional typhoons – before October brings dryer, cooler weather.

Despite this Jones, who was Japan’s head coach at the previous World Cup, remains in bullish mood. “You need to peak at the right time, and you remember back to the time of the 2003 World Cup the England team peaked in June and they were bulletproof then.

Will England fail to escape their pool for a second successive World Cup? | Robert Kitson Read more

“It’s all about timing and sometimes the preparation is about the age of your players and sometimes it’s about luck, so you’ve got to get all those things in line to make sure we’re right for the World Cup.”

Hansen held out the possibility of a friendly against Japan to give his side a chance to adapt. “Will we play Japan between now and the World Cup? We’ll have to wait and see, but it wouldn’t be a silly idea,” he said.

Organisers had hoped that the presence of national coaches and rugby dignitaries, along with Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, at the draw would boost the tournament’s public profile and match the anticipation felt over the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. However, the buildup to the draw attracted little interest among the Japanese media and there was nothing in the streets around the ancient capital’s state guest house to suggest it was about to start the countdown to a major international tournament.

“Japan 2019 will be a celebration of rugby and friendship felt throughout this great country,” Beaumont said. “No doubt it will ignite a deep love of rugby, and Japan’s people and cities will be outstanding hosts.”

Abe, who is not known to be a rugby fan, said the tournament would be the perfect opportunity for Japan to showcase rugby to the rest of Asia, where the sport hopes to recruit another million players by 2019. “I promise Japan will do everything it can to put on the best possible competition,” he said.

After being drawn in the same group as Scotland and Ireland, Japan will be hoping for a repeat of their extraordinary win against South Africa in 2015. “Any pool was going to be a big challenge, but now there’s some certainty so we can start planning,” said Jamie Joseph, who replaced Jones as Japan’s head coach in early 2016.

“Fortunately we play Ireland in June and that will give us a better understanding of them. But there’s still a long way to go, and all of the teams have good young players coming through.”

Pools for the 2019 Rugby World Cup

Pool A: Japan, Scotland, Ireland, Europe 1, Play-off winner

Pool B: Italy, South Africa, New Zealand, Africa 1, Repechage winner

Pool C: Argentina, France, England, Americas 1, Oceania 2

Pool D: Georgia, Wales, Australia, Oceania 1, Americas 2