Wilkinson rates Wales

England hero Jonny Wilkinson says Wales are the side to watch in the RBS Six Nations Championship. England were out scored three tries to one and needed twenty-three points from their brilliant fly half to secure a nervous Rugby World Cup quarter-final victory over Steve Hansen’s men in Brisbane in November.

Wilkinson, who has been ruled out of the forthcoming competiton due to a shoulder injury, is in no doubt that Clive Woodward’s side face a tough challenge when the two countries meet at Twickenham on March 20th.

“In the Rugby World Cup we had direct contact with Wales, so we know a lot about them and the way they are playing at the moment is fantastic,” he said. “They are there on merit and other teams have got to play well against Wales. They have made a statement by the way they played in the Rugby World Cup to say ‘we could have beaten New Zealand and we could have beaten England’.

“So they are there, and France again who were favourites for the Rugby World Cup at one point.”

Wilkinson said he was regarding every team as a potential banana skin: “I think everyone tends to play well against us anyway. Every team has got a bit of an image and pride to guard, but that is the way it is, you are judged on your last performance.

“We have got to make sure that after these next two weekends that we are continuing to move on a positive, upwards, curve.”

The man who drop-kicked his country to glory Down Under knows everyone will be out to bring the world champions down a peg or two.

“It took a huge effort from everyone in the team to win the Rugby World Cup and we all pulled through and I think everyone should be proud of being able to say, however many times, that they were there,” he continued. “What I am more scared of is that you might have to say I was there when we let ourselves down in the RBS Six Nations, or we had a bad tour.

“That is the sort of thing I fear having to talk about for the rest of my life, the missed opportunities and that does scare me a bit. The important thing now is that we get another medal to add to the pile.”