Robinson wants England to make Twickenham a fortress again

ANDY ROBINSON expects England to encounter a “highly-charged” Wales team in Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations opener at Twickenham.

Injuries and suspension might have severely hampered Wales coach Mike Ruddock's plans for a successful title defence, but England boss Robinson believes the reigning Grand Slam champions still pose a major threat.

"Every team has injuries, so that is something you have just got to deal with," said Robinson.

"I think we will have a highly-charged side that will be full of confidence coming to Twickenham. Because of the way they (Wales) have played over the last year, they've grown some belief.

"But what is important to us is that Twickenham is a fortress, and it is now time to re-establish that. We started to do it in the autumn, and it is important for us to match whatever Wales have got."

England beat Australia and Samoa and lost narrowly to the All Blacks in the autumn, but Robinson is convinced his side is improving since losing three times in last season's Six Nations. "In the three games we played in the autumn, I thought we set a benchmark, and it is important we build on that," he added.

"We haven't been together for a few months, so it's important we gel quickly and develop the systems we were attempting to work on in the autumn and improve our game step by step.

"Playing quickly, that's the thing for us we want players that are able to make those decisions under pressure, playing at a real fast pace, and I think that bodes well for the development of England."

Robinson has named a revised 27-man squad to prepare for the match, ahead of his scheduled team announcement this afternoon.

Nine players have been cut from the original Six Nations party, including four who are sidelined by injury Pat Sanderson (back), Olly Barkley (dislocated thumb), Mark Van Gisbergen (sprained foot) and George Chuter (knee sprain).

The other five players omitted are Tom Varndell, Louis Deacon, Stuart Abbott, Perry Freshwater and Magnus Lund.

With captain Martin Corry nailing down one of England's back-row spots against Wales, the major interest centres on whether or not World Cup winner Lawrence Dallaglio will earn a recall 17 months after he retired from international rugby.

Wasps flanker Joe Worsley and Leicester's Lewis Moody are favourites to pack down alongside Corry, but Dallaglio remains on course at least for a place in England's match-day 22.