Wayne Smith, Rugby union editor | November 04, 2009

Article from: The Australian

ENGLAND five-eighth Jonny Wilkinson might have etched his name into rugby history but he has all but been obliterated from the memory of the man who will mark him on Saturday at Twickenham, Matt Giteau.

The Wallabies playmaker can recall having played against Wilkinson only twice before in the international arena, both World Cup cliffhangers, and never in a direct positional confrontation.

He admits to erasing all memories of their last meeting, in the painful 2007 World Cup quarter-final where Wilkinson's four penalty goals tipped Australia out of the tournament at the quarter-final stage, 12-10.

"I don't have any real memory of what he did or how he controlled the game," said Giteau yesterday.

But it seems Giteau's amnesia is not entirely deliberate and selective.

Subconsciously he appears to have purged his mind of Wilkinson, forgetting that he did in fact once go head-to-head with him at 10, playing there for long periods during the 2003 World Cup final, while Steve Larkham was in the blood bin having a deep facial gash attended to.

And there have been not two Giteau-Wilkinson meetings but at least three, the first one coming in the 2002 Twickenham clash in which the 20-year-old Australian made his Test debut.

That should have made it a match to remember for Giteau and indeed he retains otherwise detailed memories of his own fairly calamitous eight-minute contribution off the bench at the death.

"My debut was a bit of a shocker," he said. "I think I threw two balls out, had one run, knocked the ball on and put up one high ball that went backwards."

His wry, self-deprecating tone certainly was not that of a player building himself up. Neither was there any suggestion of him tearing Wilkinson down.

His respect for Wilkinson, who kicked two final-quarter penalty goals to ignite England's come-from-behind 32-31 victory that day in 2002, shone through in everything he said about him during yesterday's press briefing at the Wallabies' London hotel. "He brings a lot of confidence to their group, a lot of shape, his kicking game; he steers the team around really well," Giteau said.

Yet, with respect, those are the sorts of observations that even the shallowest of rugby fans might make. Giteau, to be sure, is on his best behaviour at the moment, aware that pre-tour revelations that he was deeply unhappy with the Wallabies set-up and his role within it painted him in a fairly unflattering light.

But it was more than just a case of him simply being diplomatic. Wilkinson might be dominating the thoughts of England supporters desperate for him to shore up their injury-ravaged team -- which is deliciously ironic given that he has sustained 13 different injuries, most of them career-threatening, since his World Cup-winning field-goal against Australia in 2003 -- but Giteau would appear to have other things on his mind.

While he takes it as a given that Wilkinson will inspire England on the weekend, he was stumped when asked whether he could similarly inspire Australia. "That's a tough question," he said. "The biggest thing for me is the enjoyment . . . obviously to enjoy my football and that will reflect in the way I'm playing. If I'm playing my best football hopefully that will help the team and if everyone is playing their best football, then hopefully we'll get the results we're after."

What Giteau enjoys more than anything is running with the football and there was an element of premeditation about the way he continually took on the All Blacks defence in Tokyo last weekend, hoping the sheer fun of it would revive his old finesse.

"It was the way the match unfolded but it was also something I was quite conscious of," he said. "I'd worked quite hard throughout that mini pre-season on my running game and getting more involved, rather than just distributing all the time. I feel that's when I play my best rugby, when I'm running. So it was something I was conscious of."

Whatever differences he and Robbie Deans might have, clearly the Wallabies coach has given his blessing to Giteau's crash-through approach. "I thought Matt had an outstanding game last weekend," Deans said. "If he maintains that standard, he'll enjoy his footy enormously and so will his mates."

Yet Giteau -- who still has never scored a try against the All Blacks or England -- has now set a conundrum for himself.

Last year at Twickenham, England made all the running but it was Australia, with Giteau contributing 20 points off his boot while exercising tight, Wilkinson-like territorial control with his tactical kicking, which emerged victorious, 28-14.

There is no question what approach Wilkinson will adopt on Saturday. Outside of the Springboks, there is not a player in world rugby who can kick the ball with such deadly effect.

But Giteau has made it tricky for himself and, in the process, tricky for England. He could fall back on his tactics of a year ago and attempt to coolly boot the Wallabies to victory. Or he could turn up wearing his dancing shoes and attempt to ignite a joyous Grand Slam campaign with a dazzling running display.

It's a toss-up. But whatever he decides, it's sure to be unforgettable.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...015651,00.html