Rugby Union: Wilkinson on Course for Autumn Caps

Jonny Wilkinson has not played for England since his winning drop-goal in the 2003 World Cup final but his director of rugby at Newcastle, Rob Andrew, believes the fly-half will make his long-awaited return to the white jersey in November.

Wilkinson has been plagued by a series of injuries since returning in triumph from Australia and although he did tour New Zealand with the Lions three years ago Andrew quickly wearied of being asked when Newcastle's prized asset would play for England again. But with the squad returning for pre-season training next week Andrew is now relaxed when talking about Wilkinson and England.

"Jonny is a class act and I could not think of another player who produced the stuff he did at the end of last season having virtually not played for two years," he said. "He needs a good pre-season and a strong two months at the start of the new season to lead into the autumn internationals."

Andrew is adamant that the rugby world will see a new Wilkinson. The compulsive, obsessive fly-half who spent much of his spare time on the training field seeking perfection has been replaced by a 27-year-old who has listened to what his body has told him.

"Jonny has the ambition to play the next part of his career in a liberated way and enjoy his rugby a bit more," said Andrew. "This is about the next five years for Jonny and we are trying to get him to do a lot less of everything. He hardly needs to train, in my opinion, just tick over, feel good in the gym, kick a few balls, work with the team and go home."

The former Australia full-back Matthew Burke will captain Newcastle, with Andrew wanting Wilkinson to concentrate on his own game and form a potent partnership with his centres Jamie Noon and Mathew Tait. "Burkey deals with the pressures of top-class rugby with a smile on his face and he has been good for Jonny," said Andrew.

Australia face New Zealand in the opening Tri-nations fixture in Christchurch on Saturday with their coach John Connolly warning that players who step out of line off the field will be thrown out of the squad. Wallabies have been involved in a number of bar and night-club incidents in recent years and Connolly warned that the team's reputation needed to be restored.

The former All Black captain Tana Umaga has become the first player in the professional era to be granted temporary release from his contract with the New Zealand Rugby Union to play for Toulon this autumn. Umaga, who retired from international rugby at the end of last season, is expected to receive some £250,000 for a 10-match stint in France.

Northampton have signed Rob Laird from Wasps. The former London Irish and Bath full-back, 23, who can also play at centre and fly-half, joined Wasps in 2001 and made eight first-team appearances last season, scoring three tries.