Johnson expected to stick with Wilkinson

MARTIN JOHNSON will keep faith with Jonny Wilkinson when he names his England team at noon today to face Ireland at Twickenham on Saturday.

The fly-half has come under intense criticism for his display in England’s laboured 17-12 victory over Italy nine days ago, but Johnson is not easily swayed by public opinion and will hand the Toulon strategist the No.10 shirt .

The critics claim Wilkinson, 30, lacks ideas with ball in hand and stands too deep to inject the pace and dynamism required to break the gain line. In many respects that is a valid argument, but Wilkinson has never really done that job, even in the halcyon days of 2003. Back then he had Matt Dawson and Will Greenwood either side of him to provide the spark and flair that this England side lack.

What Wilkinson does provide is a near-flawless kicking game – his performance in Rome, where he missed two penalties and a conversion attempt, notwithstanding – and a robust defence. With Danny Cipriani bidding farewell to England by signing for the Melbourne Reds, Toby Flood is the most obvious alternative. The Leicester man provided a convincing case by scoring 18 points against Gloucester in the Premiership on Saturday, but the fact that he was allowed to play for his club means he is unlikely to start against Declan Kidney’s Grand Slam champions.

The same goes for the other 16 players released back to their clubs by England over the course of Wednesday and Thursday, suggesting that Johnson is preparing to name an unchanged side.

That will put the onus firmly on Danny Care and Riki Flutey to take the pressure off Wilkinson by making the breaks that he seemingly cannot.

Harlequins scrum-half Care was outstanding in the victory against Waleswhile Flutey showed glimpses of a return to form in Rome following a lengthy lay-off due to a shoulder injury.

Elsewhere, it will be interesting to watch the fight between England skipper Steve Borthwick and Lions captain Paul O’Connell. The line-out, which is an area where Borthwick has few equals, has worked well for England so far, and he will be looking to make a point after being left out the tour to South Africa by Ian McGeechan.

And England will also be quietly thankful that Jerry Flannery will be suspended after his ludicrous kick at France’s Alexis Pallison during Ireland’s 33-10 loss in Paris. Dylan Hartley is likely to be England’s hooker for the next generation, but with the out-of-form Tim Payne and inexperienced Dan Cole alongside him at prop the front row could have been an area of concern for England.

ENGLAND (possible): D Armitage; Cueto, Tait, Flutey, Monye; Wilkinson, Care; Payne, Hartley, Cole, Borthwick, Shaw, Haskell, Moody, Easter