THE big problem with any plan to beat Australia is that unless you can control the ball, they have a back division that can cut any team to ribbons. Believe me, I know. Scotland have faced them five times over the past year, each time matching them in pretty well every aspect of play, only to be ruthlessly punished for every mistake.

They are all dangerous, but for me the man you have to stop is Matt Giteau. He may be tiny in comparison with the modern trend for centres who look like refugees from the forwards, but he is the one who makes that formidable back division tick.

Every member of that back division is a game-breaker, each with the ability to score two or three tries a game or produce the moment of magic that turns a tight match.

What makes Australia so dangerous is that they can attack you either way: individually, or playing off each other. They are supremely confident in their passing skills and their runners, whichever they believe will produce results.

Everybody knows about the back three, who justifiably get a lot of attention. Although Australia expect to be without Clyde Rathbone next week, their options include Chris Latham, Lote Tuqiri, Wendell Sailor and Mat Rogers.

Whichever three they pick, they are capable of cutting you to pieces, but they need the men inside to deliver the ball, and that is where Giteau comes in.

His ability to read the game and his awareness of what is happening around him mean that not only can he turn the game himself, but he is superb at bringing others into play. His decision-making and distribution are exceptional.

He has moved around a lot, played almost everywhere behind the pack. His versatility means he has a lot of experience of all the different positions, and knows how they are thinking and how to exploit their opportunities.

At only 5ft 10in and a touch over 13st, he is neither huge nor particularly powerful, especially in comparison with Stirling Mortlock outside him, but that is where the balance of this Australia back-line works so well, with that classic centre combination, one dancer, one power machine. I don’t expect Giteau to play 12 for the rest of his career. I’d be fairly sure that when Stephen Larkham, who is also out of next weekend’s match, calls it a day, we will see him playing 10.

The good news for England is that brilliant is not unbeatable. France showed how to stop them, and if the England players can live up to Andy Robinson’s promises, they have the tools to do a job on the Wallabies.

First, you have to have a well-organised defence that gets up among them quickly.

The French backs, led by Frederic Michalak, were racing off the line and shutting down the Australian movement before it got started. Second, take all the structure out of the game.

The Australians are a very well-organised, structured side, but are fallible if you can break the game up, smash the stereotype of lineout, scrum, lineout, maul, ruck and back to lineout again. Take tap penalties, quick lineouts, keep the ball off the deck, with lots of offloading in the tackle. Don’t give the Wallaby defence a point where they can settle, and make sure the ball is always moving.

I know it is easier said than done, but it is the way to beat them, and is exactly what we are told the new England brand is trying to do.

Of all the major teams, Australia are the ones most addicted to structure. That is why so many of their attacking plays come from set-pieces, particularly the scrum, something that is partly a legacy of their history, partly a factor of the rugby league influence that plays such a big role in their team.

The other essential ingredient in beating Australia is to target their forwards, a well-oiled machine but without the individual flair of the backs, particularly in the front five. Calling the shots are George Gregan, still the master tactician, and Larkham, his astute partner, but if you can turn the game into a form of organised chaos and block Giteau, you are a long way down the line to beating them.