But he will not be at the match

But he will not be at the match.
“Obviously I’ll watch the game but as for going back to Twickenham, there’s certainly no temptation – I hate the place,” said Hadley, echoing Hodgson’s words this week “It wasn’t what I call a proper rugby atmosphere. It’s full of snobs who don’t know a thing about the game.”The only time I’ve been back since 1988 was in the cup final with Sale [in 1997] but I didn’t enjoy it so I’ve never been back to watch a game I’m not turning my back on Wales. Adrian Hadley never thought much of Twickenham, and the man who scored two tries for Wales the last time they won there, in 1988, has passed on his lack of affection to one England’s current talents. Wales, on the other hand, have natural ball-players in every area of their team, including the front row, where the shaggy-haired loose-head prop Duncan Jones has been known to indulge himself a little on the distribution front.

If the Welsh win themselves a decent amount of possession, the likes of Martyn Williams and Michael Owen in the back row – not to mention their Lions pairing at half-back – will leave the home defence resembling a Swiss cheese stripped of its protective rind In short, they are dangerous.. If Mike Tindall and Jamie Noon fail to prosper against these two, the tide of criticism currently washing over them will become a flood. This is a highly significant match for both Englishmen, both of whom are under great pressure.Passing gameThe English line-up is not exactly top-heavy with visionary footballers capable of throwing the odd million-dollar pass. As it is, they have Matthew Watkins, a brilliant broken-field runner but no great shakes in the muscle department, and Hal Luscombe, a tall South African wing who borders on the anonymous.

Stephen Jones probably matches him as a marksman over the short and medium ranges, but Wales no longer have their howitzer option, thanks to Gavin Henson’s suspension Henson won the game from distance last time out. His mates may miss him today.The centresIn an ideal world, Wales would have fielded Henson and Tom Shanklin in their midfield – a combination sufficiently physical to make England think twice in this area. There again, the decidedly anti-scrummaging Kiwi referee, Paul Honiss, is in charge, so anything might happen. If he permits a proper contest, it will go England’s way.Goal-kickingCharlie Hodgson, deep in hostage to fortune territory after his withering comments about the Twickenham crowd earlier this week, has suffered his fair share of purgatorial moments at this venue – not least against France in last year’s championship.

He is, however, in the form of his life: cool, collected, confident. As the Welsh front row circa 2004 was better than today’s combination, and given the emergence of Andrew Sheridan as a new red-rose man-eater, things look bleak for the visitors. Key areas Where the Anglo-Welsh battle will be won and lostScrummagingThe last time Wales played at Twickenham, they found themselves on the painful end of some powerful English set-piece work – particularly in the final quarter, when the home side summoned the ogreish Julian White from the bench, as they will be able to do this year. If they get their strategy right, a two-score victory is not beyond them.

If they get it wrong, Wales will run in a couple of killer tries and laugh themselves silly all the way down the M4, just as they did in 1988 For Robinson, it does not bear thinking about. They have the forward strength, they have one of the form outside-halves in world rugby – it is time the crowd at Twickenham stopped craving the return of Jonny Wilkinson and paid Charlie Hodgson some proper respect – and they have a back three full of pace and finishing prowess. He feels the damage to the red rose fabric caused by the rush of big-name departures has been mended, that the gaps have been plugged and the holes filled This, he says, is a new England. “Not my England, but an England created by the players themselves.”A convincing victory today would reinforce his belief that a side capable of defending the World Cup is beginning to take shape, not least because the two following Six Nations matches, against Italy in Rome and Scotland in Edinburgh, are eminently winnable and should leave England perfectly placed to challenge for a northern hemisphere title they last won under Martin Johnson three years ago Defeat, however, would leave them in pieces. It is 18 years since Wales last ransacked Twickenham, to the wild delight of a people still able to watch important rugby in Pontypool and Maesteg, and it would be a serious blow to English morale if their opponents suddenly put that record to rights a mere 18 months shy of the next global tournament.England should win. The return of Lawrence Dallaglio to international rugby after a spell of self-imposed exile may or may not undermine Corry’s authority in the squad, but his presence on the bench gives the world champions a far greater air of certainty than that brought to the mix by the the European champions.Dallaglio has put Wales to the sword more than once over the last decade, and when the other proven match-winners among the replacements – Julian White and Matt Dawson of old, Andy Goode of more recent vintage – are taken into account, it is safe to predict that England will land the harder punches from the sidelines.Robinson believes, perhaps for the first time since succeeding Sir Clive Woodward in the early autumn of 2004, that his players have emerged from the shadow cast by the World Cup-winning side.