TOKYO, 28 Oct - Eddie Jones believes the power of the onsen will ensure England are in prime condition for their Rugby World Cup final against South Africa.

Despite injury concerns over captain Owen Farrell and winger Jonny May, the head coach is confident his squad - including replacement scrum-half Ben Spencer who has arrived from London - will be in even better shape for Saturday's match in Yokohama.

That is bold from Jones, given England were too good for defending champions New Zealand in their semi-final, winning 19-7 to set up a repeat of the Rugby World Cup 2007 final. 

And it's all down to the baths. "The great thing about our players is that physically they are in fantastic condition, so their ability to recover is extraordinary," Jones said, Ben Youngs, top, against New Zealand, and Maro Itoje, in training, being perfect examples. "They are taking to the onsens in droves and it is a great way of recovering.

"You think how smart the Japanese are - 150 years ago each village had their own onsen which is perfect (for) recovery. Hot, cold, social interactio. You relax, it's perfect. So our players are better today than they were last week and our training will be of a higher standard than last week. That's the condition they are in.

"We have had a day or two of recovery and started a little bit of preparation today but the players understand they haven't done anything yet. The most important week is coming up and what I sense is the excitement about what the team can achieve."

Scrum-half Spencer, who has replaced the injured Willi Heinz, has three caps and took part in one of the England training camps in Italy before being left out of the final 31-man squad. Heinz is mentoring Spencer and has been given this specific role to keep him involved.

"It is tough for Willi," Jones said. "He's been a great contributor and is a very well-liked member of the squad. He was in tears in the dressing room. He has collected himself and knows he has another role to do for us and will fulfil it well this week. 

"Ben has been in and around the squad for the last couple of years and knows the game and knows the players and fits in quickly. We said to the guys outside the 31 that they need to be ready to go.

"The task in hand is no different from any other player and he has to learn a bit more and get himself physically and mentally ready."

Jones was at the International Stadium Yokohama on Sunday night to watch South Africa beat Wales 19-16 and knows the kind of challenge England will face on Saturday. He was a coaching consultant when South Africa beat England to win the 2007 World Cup.

"They are a massively aggressive forward pack and are going to be a difficult side to beat but we know a couple of areas where we think we can expose them and we'll make sure we are well prepared in those areas.

"They can play differently but we also know they can come through the front door. Not many Springbok teams you play don't come through the front door so we will be ready at the front door and have enough cover for the back door, too." 

RNS cj/js/bo/mr