English rugby hard men show soft side when chased by 'snake'

England's national rugby team might exert a tough presence on the playing field, but a video from one of their players suggests they're anything but tough off it.

Posting a video to Instagram, England's fullback Mike Brown captured the moment a handful of his teammates made a panicked bolt after being chased by another teammate carrying a large plastic snake.

"Don't think the boys like [snake] (excuse the language)," Brown's post said.

Attracting thousands of views since it was posted on Thursday, the video has had over 7000 likes and close to 35,000 watches.

The team's fans have been quick to jump to the defence of their countrymen.

"Can't blame them," alankane_9 said.

"This reminds me of the plastic spider we used to have," laura_j_mcgarry added.

England are currently in Australia as they prepare to play the Wallabies in Brisbane on Saturday.

Australian coach Michael Cheika has beefed up his side to match England's physical threat with a towering new lock and a giant centre pairing for the Test series opener.

Cheika has opted for three new caps – ACT Brumbies lock Rory Arnold, Queensland Reds centre Samu Kerevi and Western Force wing Dane Haylett-Petty – to start for Australia in the first of three Tests for the Cook Cup.