England’s ‘Kamikaze Kids’ face Australia’s feared ‘Pooper’ combination in Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final admitting the Wallabies duo served as inspiration when growing up.

Tom Curry and Sam Underhill played together for the first time in the record win over Ireland in August and their impact at the breakdown, when carrying and in defence has seen them installed as Eddie Jones’ preferred flankers.

At Oita Stadium they will collide with David Pocock and Michael Hooper, the veteran twin opensides who have operated in tandem to great effect since 2012, amassing 180 caps between them.

“Being combative lends itself to the position. It’s a physical position and not the most glamorous of work at times but sometimes it’s not about line breaks, miss passes or kicks in behind,” Underhill said.

“It’s pretty gritty and unglamorous work. You’ve got to enjoy that and you’ve got to see how what you’re doing contributes to the team.

“When the guys are scoring out wide it’s usually because the forwards have done something good in the middle, something that’s fairly dull to watch but that creates special moments in the game.”