Dylan Hartley won't 'disrespect' Italy by setting England a points target as he taps into Alastair Cook's expertise

Dylan Hartley will not “disrespect” Italy ahead of this weekend’s Six Nations clash, with the England captain refusing to set his side a points target despite Ireland laying down the gauntlet a fortnight ago with the first bonus-point victory of the championship.

The truth is that if England fail to record a bonus point victory over an out-of-sorts Italy side currently rooted to the bottom of the Six Nations table, it will be regarded a failure. England will have high hopes of a 17th consecutive victory on Sunday and plan on taking another step towards a second consecutive Grand Slam success, something that would negate any impact of bonus points.

That’s why Hartley wants to see his side walk before they run, and the Northampton Saints hooker insisted that setting points targets is not something he is willing to do while he is in charge of the side.

“It’s disrespectful to put a number on that,” Hartley said. “If we just try and control great basic, unselfish attack, backed up with suffocating pressure in defence, I’m confident that we’ll get a result.

“First and foremost it’s a win. The targets we set are not numbers, it’s how much control we have in the game. How many errors we can force with our defence. How controlled can we be because we’re being unselfish and the basics are being done that well.”

Talking of unselfish, one of Hartley’s friends attended training on Friday in the form of Alastair Cook, the man who stood down as captain of the England cricket team earlier this month because he no longer believed he was the right man to lead the side anymore.

“I heard he was a Saints fan so I offered him up to a game and then he asked me to speak at a local pub for a Christmas dinner with his mates as a guest of honour,” Hartley explained of his friendship with Cook, someone who could be considered a polar opposite to Hartley given his calm and calculated approach to captaincy as opposed to Hartley’s lead from the front attitude. “I ended up having a few pints and we stayed in touch.”

“Eddie asked if I could bring him in and he said yes. Free lunch and a day watching the boys train!

“He had a strong influence on selection in cricket. Here it is the complete opposite. Eddie joked I would probably pick myself in the team straight away.

“Like any friendship you talk, he has a young family and is away from home a lot. We have had conversations (on leadership). You talk and exchange things.”

Hartley’s captaincy has also brought the best out of Owen Farrell, his vice-captain, who will receive his 50th cap this weekend at the tender age of 25 years old. Farrell has developed into one of the more visible leaders on the pitch, his voice often easily heard over the referee’s microphone, and he also doubles up as Hartley’s roommate when they stay at Pennyhill Park – a great coffee maker and singer, as Hartley revealed.

“Owen would be one of the first that if he didn't see something that was right for the team he would address it,” Hartley said of his understudy. “We have a dressing room that is strong enough to do that.

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“It's like Alistair Cook thing. We sat upstairs this morning, put a coffee on and talked about rugby and what we wanted from training. Owen is always on it and it's always about rugby.

“He has been doing the job when I am not on the field and does it really well. He leads in a way and there are so many others that do – Ben Youngs, Danny Care, George Ford are fantastic for us as well, Owen is just another one – it probably just works that he is my roommate and has always been.”