Jonny Wilkinson expects to face his toughest Six Nations test yet, against Ireland.
Jonny Wilkinson is looking forward to his toughest RBS Six Nations test yet when England take on Ireland at Croke Park.The Newcastle Falcons fly-half has been the subject of much speculation of late, with questions over his fitness dominating the international tournament's two-week break.
But while his triumphant return in the Calcutta Cup served to remind the sport of England's pedigree in what is a World Cup year, Wilkinson is now solely focused on beating the fifth ranked side in the world - two places above England.
"There is always a special atmosphere when England play in Dublin and I expect Croke Park to be similar in front of a much larger crowd," Wilkinson explained.
"But that gets me excited. I play rugby to challenge myself, and to see what level of performance I can attain under the most difficult circumstances.
"I want to bring out the best in the team and in myself. So I have mixed feelings when we win but I have scored a lot of the points.
"I love kicking points but also it's great to help create openings for others."
After the highs of his return to the team for the opening win against Scotland, Twickenham fans were left booing late on in the team's difficult 20-7 victory over Italy.
The record Six Nations point scorer understands the frustration when the team approaches penalties conservatively, but insists the result is always the most important thing.
"The fans don't like to see us win in the way we did against Italy, but neither do the players. We don't enjoy winning games like that. But if we have to then we will," he added.
"I can understand the fans' frustrations but this team has just come off the back of one of the worst runs in the national team's history, and it is all about getting back that winning habit back.
"I'm sure the fans won't be as selective about how we beat Ireland - as long as we come back with a win."
England take on Ireland in the third round of the tournament at 5.30pm on Saturday.
