Vickery ready to face All Blacks

12:27pm Monday 17th March 2008

England 33 Ireland 10

PHIL VICKERY watched his side finish a topsy-turvy RBS 6 Nations championship in style and the England captain now cant wait to go up against the All Blacks.

Tries from Newcastle duo Mathew Tait and Jamie Noon, plus Paul Sackey, aided by 18 points from the boot of Danny Cipriani saw England bounce back from their abject defeat against Scotland to beat Ireland 33-10 at Twickenham and take second place.

Vickery looked forward to a bright new era, starting this summer in Auckland and Christchurch when they play Tests against New Zealand.

Vickery said: Im pleased for the guys. Last weekend was a huge disappointment. We are not the finished article, but there have been massive changes in personnel on the playing and coaching side.

We have the nucleus of what can be a highly successful England team in the future.

In the two tests against New Zealand we will take on the best in the world and we know we will have to play better.

The All Blacks have set the standard of international rugby and how it should be played. If we have ambitions to be one of the best teams in world rugby we have to enjoy that experience.

If we play at the level we did against Ireland and a bit better I believe we can take on the All Blacks.

We have to set high standards and get the edge back into our training and our philosophies. If you want to be part of this team the bar has to be raised.

That process began on Saturday when Wasps fly-half Cipriani put in a masterly display on his first start in an England shirt to challenge Jonny Wilkinson as the number one playmaker.

Vickery said: Ultimately the success of this England team will come from competition. Danny has stuck his hand up and will create a lot of problems when it comes to selection.

He is a new kid on the block.

Dannys the kind of guy who will go back to his club and sit down and analyse what he needs to improve on.

The skipper also had words of support for head coach Brian Ashton whose job appeared to be under threat after a string of disappointments Vickery said: Brians come in for a hell of a lot of criticism.

Some of the things which have been said about him have been pretty horrific. Brians a proud man. He cares about his job and about this England team. We all want to be successful.

Credit to the coaches, they have really fronted up. But its about performing at a high level consistently. Somehow it always seems to take something really drastic for us to perform at the levels we need to.

Jonny Wilkinson has stated his determination to remain a big part of Englands future.

Ciprianis sparkling performance was in stark contrast to Wilkinsons miserable showing in the defeat by Scotland a week earlier.

Wilkinsons 70th England appearance came as a second half replacement for Toby Flood at inside centre C and if his new role is to be as a supersub then that is what the 28-year-old will try to become.

Playing anyw h e r e on that field will be fantastic and I think my big challenge is the same as every day C find the best of me, said Wilkinson, who received a huge roar from the Twickenham crowd when he ran on with England leading 16- 10.

He was quickly involved in the move which brought a try for Tait and looked perfectly at home in the position as England went further away from the flagging Irish over the closing stages.

Wilkinson admitted a place on the bench is not ideal by any stretch of the imagination.

But he added: Its been an interesting way of looking at things and theres a lot to learn for me.

You could see what a difference a fresh approach makes with Danny. He reacted instinctively with a mentality that said Im here to have fun and make this my day and my teams day.

If I had lost any pride I might have said Who is this kid?, but thats not me.

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

Not if your name is Jonny Wilkinson and he did not even mind that Cipriani kept the kicking duties when they were both on the pitch.

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

Every day is a learning experience and Im at a different angle now watching from the sidelines.

Its something to take in, Ive got loads to work on and Im looking forward to getting back to being myself. Im sure everybody will get behind me.

When asked whether Wilkinson might be a contender for a start at centre head coach Brian Ashton said it was something to go away and reflect on, adding: He looked pretty comfortable.

Ashton also predicted a royal battle at stand-off and Wilkinson pointed out there are other contenders in the likes of Charlie Hodgson and Shane Geraghty.

He also holds his Newcastle club-mate Flood in the highest regard and when pressed on the possibility No 12 might offer him the better chance of more caps he replied: I dont want to get carried away with talking about this C England have a perfectly good set-up.

ö Eddie OSullivans inevitable departure will dominate proceedings when the Irish RFU meet their stricken coach to discuss a dismal RBS 6 Nations.

OSullivans six-and-a-halfyear reign appears doomed, and the terms of his severance package will top the agenda.

A review is traditionally held during the week after a tournament is finished, and the only question is how quickly the IRFU want to act.

With a four-year contract secured shortly before the disastrous World Cup, 49-year-old O- Sullivan is in a strong negotiating position, and his payoff will be considerable.

The timing of his exit hinges on the succession planning at Lansdowne Road.

Irelands worst championship since 1999 and lowest Six Nations finish accelerated the freefall down the IRB rankings. Against England, Ireland collapsed to an error-strewn rabble after making an explosive start.

Even former captain Keith Wood, a staunch ally, has accepted the side are regressing. In public, the man himself is determined to continue.

I believe Im the right man to lead Irish rugby, he said.

The big question for me is have I still got the hunger for the job? C and the answer to that is absolutely.

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