England need to fire into the French pack and push them onto the back foot, making space for others. They need to hit them square on.

I don't think France's heavy defeat at Twickenham on their last visit will play on their minds.

They won the last encounter with England at the Stade de France last year and will fancy their chances.

They also did well, as did England, in the autumn internationals and should go into the game with their confidence high.

England and France are two of the in-form teams in international rugby at the moment.

It was pleasing to see them do well against the Southern Hemisphere sides towards the end of last year, although Australia, New Zealand and South Africa will point to the fact that no side from the Northern Hemisphere has ever won the World Cup.

But if England can defeat France it will certainly set them up for the Grand Slam, which has eluded them in recent years.

It was a big surprise to me to see Sale Sharks fly-half Charlie Hodgson named at centre alongside Jonny Wilkinson, and I'm sure it will have been a big surprise to Charlie.

I've seen him play a reasonable amount and there's no doubt he's a talented player. It's a gamble, a calculated gamble, and we will have to wait and see how he gets on.