Attack Coach Martin Gleeson says England are approaching this weekend’s Six Nations meeting with Wales at Twickenham like a “quarter-final”, with their Championship hopes hanging by a thread.
Having lost their opener to Scotland, England need to win every game to win the Championship, and Gleeson likened the scenario to the sharp end of a tournament. Defeat to Wales this week, or Ireland and France in the final two rounds, would end their hopes.
“We have to [treat it that way],” he said. “It’s knockout stages for us. We want to keep improving each week. We know Wales fight like really hard and will make it really difficult for us. So we’ve got to go into this with a quarter-final mentality and go after Wales. We’re going after them.
"If we don’t get the result on Saturday, we’re out. It’s a quarter-final for us.
"It’s the first time crowds have been back [at Twickenham] for a Six Nations game for a couple of years.
Eddie Jones will officially update his squad late on Tuesday, but Gleeson said all players had “pulled through a big session fine”, meaning the likes of Manu Tuilagi, Courtney Lawes and Joe Launchbury are in line for their first appearances of the Championship.
Sam Simmonds and Jack Nowell also took a full part after knocks.
The only player not involved was the uncapped Bath fly-half Orlando Bailey, who returned to his club early after coming into the camp with a mild hamstring injury.
Gleeson would not be drawn on who would captain England this weekend, leaving that decision to Head Coach Jones. He did, however, say how impressed he had been with Tom Curry’s efforts as captain in the first two rounds.
“He’s led with his actions, hasn’t he?” He said. “His stint against Italy was immense. He was all over the place. I think he broke records for his GPS for the amount of work he got through. He’s been really good for us and whether he’s captain or not, he’ll continue to be a pivotal part of the team.”
