Barnes aims to show Wilko how

WALLABY fly-half Berrick Barnes was a wide-eyed schoolboy when Jonny Wilkinson broke Wallaby hearts with the extra-time drop goal to win England the 2003 World Cup.

He watched the match on his grandmother’s couch in the Queensland mining town of Kingaroy and a few weeks later, hungry to pick up tips from the world’s best, he went out to buy Wilkinson’s books and DVD.

This afternoon, the 22-year-old will go toe-to-toe with Wilkinson in a World Cup quarter-final in front of 55,000 fans at the imposing Stade Velodrome.

But Barnes exudes confidence and, in his own inimitable style, insists the prospect of facing Wilkinson does not faze him in the slightest.

“I’ve been looking up to him since I was 17 and at high school,” he said.

“I watched the last World Cup and a few weeks later went out to buy his books to find out a bit about him. Jonny’s kicking game is the best in the world and, if you ask me, England are 20 points better with him in the team. His running game is underestimated as well.

“I’m really excited and it’s going to be a big occasion for me — but on game day he’ll pull his pants on one leg at a time, just the same as me.”

Barnes began his rugby education in league with the Brisbane Broncos and made a handful of NRL appearances before switching to the Queensland Reds.

After making a quick impact, Barnes struggled last season in a poor Reds team and he was one of the last players to be picked for the Wallabies squad.

Head coach John Connolly explained: “He didn’t have a particularly good Super 14, for a number of reasons, but he showed signs of the right temperament to survive at this level.

“When we sat down to select the squad, we decided he had the skill set and mentality to be able to handle the pressure of the World Cup.”

Barnes was asked to jump in at the deep end and made his full Test debut in the pivotal Pool B win over Wales in Cardiff, having only discovered he was playing hours before kick-off.

With Stephen Larkham now ruled out until the semi-finals following knee surgery, Connolly has put his faith in Barnes to lead the Australia past England.

Barnes admitted: “I’m going into unknown waters because I’ve never been at this level before. It’s sink or swim.

“Test footie is a lot faster but I am the luckiest man in the world to be playing at 10 with George Gregan inside me and Matt Giteau and Stirling Mortlock outside me.

“We have also got Chris Latham at the back, who has been good to me at Queensland over the last two years.

“I will be counting on them a lot this weekend. The Wales game gave me the confidence that I can do it at this level but this weekend will be a lot tougher.”