Thu, Mar 13, 2008 page18

• Jonny Wilkinson benched for Ireland clash

  REPRIEVE Danny Cipriani, who missed out on a start against Scotland after being spotted leaving a nightclub after midnight, replaces Wilkinson at 10

  • AFP
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  Jonny Wilkinson insisted the "fire is still there" to play Test rugby after the England star was dropped ahead of Saturday's Six Nations Championship clash with Ireland at Twickenham.

  England, for the final match of what has been another lackluster Championship campaign, will instead see 20-year-old rising star Danny Cipriani start at outside half with international rugby union's leading points scorer demoted to the bench.

  Not since 1999, when Wilkinson didn't make the England starting side that lost the World Cup quarter-final against South Africa in Paris, has he been left out when fit.

  

  England's Jonny Wilkinson, left, leaves the pitch as he is substituted by Danny Cipriani during their Six Nations match at Rome's Flaminio Stadium on Feb. 10.

  PHOTO: AP

  Back then, his omission could be explained as a "horses for courses" choice which allowed Paul Grayson to play at 10.

  But now Wilkinson, capped 69 times by England, has been dropped on clear form grounds alone.

  England were desperately uninspiring during last Saturday's 15-9 Calcutta Cup defeat away to Scotland.

  Yet, remarkably, only Wilkinson has been dropped from the 1st XV after a defeat which put paid to any lingering hopes of England's first Six Nations title since the Grand Slam of 2003, which preceded their World Cup triumph later that year where he kicked the winning drop-goal against hosts Australia in the final.

  Coach Brian Ashton's only other changes are on the bench, where Wilkinson replaces Charlie Hodgson and James Haskell comes in for Luke Narraway.

  Wilkinson might yet start if Newcastle colleague Toby Flood, who didn't train on Tuesday, fails to recover in time for Saturday's match.

  But, for the moment at least, England feel they can kick-off without a man who only on Saturday broke Neil Jenkins's world record of 1,090 Test points for Wales and the British and Irish Lions.

  And, in truth, Wilkinson has not been at his best this season with many critics arguing Cipriani should have had an opportunity earlier in the championship to provide England with the kind of creative spark they were so badly lacking against Scotland.

  Not that the 28-year-old Wilkinson is ready to give away his England career just yet.

  "Absolutely, the fire is still there," he told reporters at England's hotel in Bath on Tuesday.

  "One thing that will never change is that I will never stop going out there every day and trying to get better. I still do the extra training -- that will never change because you care so much," Wilkinson said.

  "Mike Catt played some of his best rugby [after the age of 30] because the shackles were off. I would like to think I can do that," he said.

  "I would never walk around thinking I am going to get dropped or I am not good enough, because I don't believe either. I would also never be arrogant enough to think I would always be picked either," Wilkinson said.

  He also paid a generous tribute to Cipriani, who would have made his first Test start against Scotland at fullback had he not been dropped by Ashton after being seen coming out of a nightclub after midnight two days before the game.

  "Looking at Danny, he is a great player with a fabulous future ahead of him. He is a team man and I respect him," Wilkinson said.

  Ashton, like Ireland counterpart Eddie O'Sullivan, must be aware that his job could be on the line if his side lose this weekend.

  "Jonny has had an inconsistent Six Nations, and it was always our intention to give Cipriani a start at some point," he said.

  But he dismissed suggestions that Wilkinson had been made a scapegoat for his and others' mistakes.

  "No, not at all. He is on the bench, he is a full part of the 22 covering the 10/12 positions. For all we know he could come on for 75 minutes and win us the game," Ashton said.

  "I felt it was a decision that had to be made, and I think it is the right one," he said.

  Cipriani, who has been playing at outside half for Wasps, is regarded as one of English rugby's brightest talents.

  "We have got another player in that position who has been on fire so this season at 10 for his club side, and I just wanted to have a look there to see if he can bring something extra to the side," Ashton said.

  And England's new No. 10 was well aware of the responsibility thrust upon his shoulders.

  "No one can replace Jonny Wilkinson as a person or as a player. What he is doing has been fantastic. I am going to talk to him all week. There is no better a person to talk to, and he has told me if there is anything I want, just ask," Cipriani said.

  The likes of former England coach Sir Clive Woodward were among those who said Ashton had been heavy-handed in dropping Cipriani last week.

  But the player said he had learned from the experience.

  "Brian has taught me a lesson, and thankfully, he's done it at the age of 20. I think it will stand me in good stead," Cipriani said.

  O'Sullivan defends record

  Eddie O'Sullivan launched a passionate defense of his record as Ireland coach as he prepared his side for what could be a make-or-break clash with England this weekend.

  Defeat at Twickenham in the final round of this season's Six Nations would mean Ireland had lost three matches in the Championship for the first time since 1999, when it was still the Five Nations.

  The knives have been out for O'Sullivan ever since he was awarded a new four-year contract by the Irish Rugby Football Union ahead of last year's World Cup, where Ireland failed to get beyond the first round.

  Ireland may have won three Triple Crowns in four years, but you have to go back to 1985 for the last time they won the championship. It is 60 years since they achieved their one and only Grand Slam.

  And there is a feeling within Ireland that O'Sullivan hasn't got the most out of a "golden generation" of Irish players.

  Several pundits have already called for the former Ireland backs coach to be sacked and even O'Sullivan's powers of persuasion may not be enough to keep him in his post if England condemn his side to a lowly fourth-place finish.

  However, O'Sullivan was defiant on Tuesday.

  "Here's a statistic: In the four years between World Cups, Ireland are second only to France in terms of the number of Six Nations wins accumulated," he said.

  "In fact France have won only two more Six Nations matches than Ireland between 2004 and 2007. Given those statistics of course it's frustrating to not have more to show for them," the 49-year-old said.

  O'Sullivan, who had two years as backs coach before taking over the top job from current Wales boss Warren Gatland, denied he'd "lost" the dressing room after nearly a decade of national service.

  "You can't say the team is getting stale because it's changing. So the question is, can I keep the team working and fresh? That's the challenge facing me and there are varying opinions on [it]," he said.

  "My position is: `Absolutely.' I'm very happy to do the job and I believe I can. The ups and downs in the business means these sort of questions will crop up but that's understandable. The situation is as long as I'm doing the job and comfortable to do it, then I'm happy to carry on. The players are happy and that's the key issue because that means we can progress and continue," O'Sullivan said.

  Ireland will be without captain Brian O'Driscoll as they seek a fifth win in a row over England.
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