Australia have won five of their past seven games, including four in a row for the first time, but lost 45-7 to Canada on Friday. The World Cup in England runs from 22 August to 27 September. "There is still a lot of rugby ahead and the key reason for announcing this now is to avoid any distractions before the critical preparation period for the World Cup begins," Yapp said. The former scrum-half won 70 caps for England and played at three World Cups.