Six Nations: Wilkinson Says the Best is Yet to Come

Jonny Wilkinson has already won a World Cup and scaled heights beyond the reach of mere sporting mortals but the returning England fly-half says his country has yet to see him at his best. Starting against Scotland this Saturday he hopes to rectify that omission and is predicting that "part two" of his career will outstrip even the first remarkable chapter.

At least two former captains, Will Carling and Matt Dawson, have complained that picking Wilkinson is an unacceptable gamble but the 27-year-old's demeanour yesterday as he contemplated his first match for England in more than three years suggested the pessimists may have to change their tune. While no one can be sure Wilkinson's nightmarish catalogue of injuries is behind him, he sounded utterly convinced brighter times now lie ahead.

Gone is the hunched, increasingly paranoid figure who appeared on the verge of breakdown at times during the 2003 World Cup. In his place in a lecture room at the University of Bath was an altogether less tortured soul with a healthier mental outlook and renewed faith in his own ability. "If I didn't believe I could do it I would have been more surprised," he said with a shrug, reflecting on his hasty Calcutta Cup call-up after barely 50 minutes of competitive rugby in three months.

"In terms of playing the game I'm a different player. I'd hate to say I'm the same player after three years out. I'd like to think, with age, I've achieved a different level of composure and see things more simply. I've also hopefully added a few more strings to my bow in terms of skills."

The England head coach, Brian Ashton, went further, hoisting the pursed-lip concerns of Carling and Dawson unceremoniously back over their heads. "Neither of us agrees with that. He's a much better player now than he was in the World Cup final in 2003," said Ashton, who did not finalise Wilkinson's selection until 10pm on Sunday. "His game understanding and maturity are at a higher level. It's a logical selection for where English rugby is at the moment. The key thing was that he made the decision. I was pretty happy to go along with it."

There was even a hint from Wilkinson that his exile from Test rugby - apart from a brief reappearance on the 2005 Lions tour - may have done him some long-term good. During his lay-off he had his moments of despair - "Every time I watched Newcastle go out I gradually felt further and further away . . . when you see people doing what you want to do it takes its toll" - but now believes everything in his life has happened for a reason.

"In life terms it's been nothing compared to what some people go through. You can either be a bit bitter or develop empathy for other people in difficult situations. I now appreciate much more the luck I had in my injury-free years. I'm looking to build part two of my career as a slightly different person."

Yesterday was the day English rugby looked itself in the mirror and, for the first time in three years, fancied what it saw. Sir Clive Woodward always used to say the secret of management was assembling the right people in the same room and Ashton has undoubtedly perfected that trick this week. Flanking Wilkinson yesterday were Andy Farrell and Jason Robinson, the two former Wigan and Great Britain rugby league legends now reunited in union, and even Ashton has been pinching himself - "I never thought anything like this would happen" - at the sight of the three sharing the same training field.

Both Ashton, whose late father Albert played for Wigan before the second world war, and Wilkinson were big league fans when Farrell and Robinson were in their 13-a-side pomp and the competitive spark which underpinned those trophy-laden days has not been extinguished.

"I wouldn't be wasting my time and other people's if I didn't think I could add something to the team," said the 32-year-old Robinson, set to play his first Test since retiring from international rugby because of burn-out in September 2005. "The potential in this squad is very high and the more this team plays together the better it's going to get."