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Grayson glad to hear London calling
23 February 2004, 8:37 am
World champions England are going home next week - and fly-half Paul Grayson is relishing a return to fortress Twickenham.
The unbeaten RBS 6 Nations title favourites have played - and won - nine successive away games, including their World Cup campaign in Australia.

But Twickenham, a ground where Sir Clive Woodwards team last lost a Test match during the 1999 World Cup, now beckons for back-to-back appointments with Ireland and Wales.

Victory in both games would sent England to France on March 27 just win away from achieving a second successive Grand Slam.

England have only played two games on home soil in 11 months, against France in a World Cup warm-up match and their non-cap celebration game against the New Zealand Barbarians five days before Christmas.

But the sold-out signs are already up for Englands two Twickenham RBS 6 Nations fixtures, which will guarantee two firecracker occasions.

England havent played at home for a long time and have kind of got used to winning on the road, said Grayson, whose 15-point haul helped England secure a fourth successive Calcutta Cup triumph by defeating Scotland 35-13 at Murrayfield.

It will be nice for everyone to get back to London.

Grayson and second-row forward Danny Grewcock - replacements for World Cup talismen Jonny Wilkinson and Martin Johnson, respectively - gained unstinting praise from Woodward after the valiant Scots were predictably subdued.

Grewcock produced a rampaging try-scoring display, while Grayson, as he had done against Italy six days earlier, again bossed proceedings expertly behind a dominant red rose pack.

He has already amassed 35 points in this seasons RBS 6 Nations competition, and five more against Ireland on Saturday week will take him past Rob Andrews Test career mark of 396, Only Wilkinson has scored more for England.

Losing Johnson and Wilkinson was obviously massive, but I thought that Grewcock was man-of-the-match, said Woodward. I thought he was fantastic.

It is a big, big bonus for us, and its the same with Grayson. He stepped up to the mark, and he knows how to win a game for us.

Grayson, typically gracious in victory, paid tribute to Scotland, who fought tooth and nail, despite conceding four tries as Grewcock, Ben Cohen, Josh Lewsey and Iain Balshaw all crossed their line.

It was a very physical game, Grayson added. The Scots were committed to the end, and they were resilient. It took us a long time to break them down and even then, when we perhaps thought wed cracked it, they didnt stop playing.

Scotland have a very capable pack and we needed to be mentally right on our game because we knew we were going into a cauldron.

Scotland wing Simon Danielli at least had the satisfaction of scoring the first try against England in this seasons tournament, aided by an assist from his Bath colleague Balshaw, who was foxed by a fiendish bounce and succeeded only in deflecting the ball towards a grateful Danielli.

I think it will mean a lot to get back to Twickenham, said Woodward. Weve only had two games there since the last Six Nations and it will take a good side to beat us there.

Woodward plans to announce his team for the Ireland clash next Monday, when it is hoped that Wasps flanker Joe Worsley will be back in contention after a hamstring injury sidelined him from the Edinburgh mission.


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