Wilko: Substitute

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Jonny Wilkinson insists he will keep working away to remain an integral part of the England set-up despite losing his fly-half place to Danny Cipriani against Ireland.

Wilkinson took Brian Ashton's decision to leave him on the bench with his usual good grace, but he insists he will still be trying his very best to win a place back in England's starting XV.

Wasps starlet Cipriani performed superbly on his full debut as he led England to a promising win in their Six National finale at Twickenham.

Wilkinson came on as a second half replacement for Toby Flood as he played at inside centre while Cirpriani continued at fly-half.

Wherever and whenever Wilkinson is called upon, he says he will be doing his best to play a significant role for England.

"Playing anywhere on that field will be fantastic and I think my big challenge is the same as every day - find the best of me," said Wilkinson.

"It's been an interesting way of looking at things and there's a lot to learn for me."

Fresh approach

"You could see what a difference a fresh approach makes with Danny.

"He reacted instinctively with a mentality that said 'I'm here to have fun and make this my day and my team's day'.

"If I had lost any pride I might have said 'Who is this kid?', but that's not me.

"Do you kick up a fuss, shout at meetings, set other people wake-up calls at four in the morning?"

As well as praising Cipriani's all-round performance, Wilkinson insisted he was happy for the youngster to keep hold of the kicking duties even when he came off the bench.

"Danny has deserved his go and he took it brilliantly," he said.

"Every day is a learning experience and I'm at a different angle now watching from the sidelines.

"It's something to take in, I've got loads to work on and I'm looking forward to getting back to being myself. I'm sure everybody will get behind me."

Ashton has admitted that he may have to think about whether Wilkinson could now switch to inside centre on a more permanent basis.