Charlie Hodgson is looking forward to the most daunting test of his rugby career against New Zealand at Twickenham on Saturday.
The England fly-half will take part in his first training session today since injuring his groin in last weekend?s 26-16 victory against Australia, knowing he must be 100 per cent fit to take on the challenge of New Zealand?s Daniel Carter.
?I?m fine. I can?t see any problems,? Hodgson said. ?I was very worried that I might have to miss the game.
?My groin was sore for a few days after the Australia game but some good treat-ment and physio paid off, thank goodness.
?It is one of the biggest Tests I?ve ever played in. You play rugby to be involved in games like this.
?A lot of the work I?ve done this week has been mental, just running through the calls.
?But I?ve done a lot of work with the squad over the past three weeks and missing out on a couple of training sessions is not a problem.?
England head coach Andy Robinson has retained the same seven replacements on duty against Australia, including Wasps full-back Mark Van Gisbergen, who made his Test debut as a temporary replacement for Sale winger Mark Cueto.
Robinson said: ?Charlie has been involved in the decision- making side of things and we are pretty happy he will be fully fit after Friday?s team run.?
Hodgson received his injury with a typically courageous tackle on Australian wing Drew Mitchell and knows his tackle count against Carter will need to be as high as in any of his 20 Tests.
Hodgson might have spent much of his time in the England squad as understudy to Jonny Wilkinson but it is the dazzling all-round skills of Carter which he admires most.
?He?s set the standard,? continued Hodgson, who scored 11 points against Australia to take him to 165 points in an England shirt and put him eighth on the all-time list.
?He?s a fantastic player and everything he has done has turned to gold - he?s the best stand-off in the world at the moment.
?The strength of the guy amazes me. He?s not a big guy but he brushes off tackles so easily.?
The same has been said of the Sale Sharks fly-half who demonstrated his own creative talents for an hour against Australia, even if England?s three-quarters did not always exploit his breaks and inventive passing.
Against the All Blacks, a team universally acclaimed as the best in the world, he accepts he will not have as much time or space as last week when England?s forwards were dominant. Hodgson said: ?We have to try to play our game and be spot on with our execution or it will be like running into a brick wall.
?They are a very physical side but very skilful as well and very difficult to defend against.
?It will be the ultimate test of our defensive game. We have got to be competent in the tackles or they will make us look stupid.
?There are possibilities for us to attack against New Zealand if we can pressure them for 80 minutes.?
Robinson will look for another power-packed display from his forwards after they demolished the Wallabies but the World Cup holders are in an unfamiliar position of going into a Twickenham Test match as clear underdogs.
Robinson accepted they would have to improve on the performance against Australia, saying: ?We have got to step up in all areas. We have go to be more physical and when we get opportunities we have to take them.
?We have got be more ruthless in our approach. We dropped off a number of one on one tackles in the game against Australia; against New Zealand they will take those.
?They pride themselves in scoring from turnovers and any turnovers we concede we will be on red alert.
?We have got to be in their faces. We have got to apply as much pressure as possible, physically and mentally.?
Robinson again refuted allegations that his team have been spying on New Zealand training sessions, saying: ?There is no truth whatsoever in terms of the alleged incident. England Rugby and the RFU were not involved in any shape or form.?
Robinson said New Zealand were a fearsome proposition and his side must capitalise on any opportunities. He said: ?We know the pressure is there but if you can?t enjoy it why play Test rugby?
?They have played very well and deserve to be where they are but I have total belief in the England side this weekend.
?We have got to take the game to New Zealand and I believe we have the personnel to win this game.?
