James Haskell vows to fight fire with fire as flanker calls on England to match Wales passion in Six Nations battle

England are already preparing for the cauldron that will be the Principality Stadium when Wales host the defending Six Nations champions on Saturday, that much was clear from Eddie Jones’s words after his side squeezed past France at the weekend. With Jones somewhat concerned about how England started the match, he is already looking to turn around the poor record that the red rose holds in the Welsh capital, and will spend this week searching for the root cause of the trend that sees Wales win 60 per cent of their matches against the English on home soil.

So he will welcome the sight of his players trying to identify the issue for themselves, with fit-again flanker James Haskell calling on the squad to match the passion that will be on full display this weekend.

Regardless of whether Wales’s plan to have the roof on the Principality Stadium closed – at England’s discretion – the match will be played in darkness thanks to its 16:50 kick-off. Wales will happily turn down the lights, ramp up the noise and make England’s arrival in the minutes before kick-off as uncomfortable as possible. Haskell though has called on his teammates to fight fire with fire.

“Going to Wales, it is a huge rugby heartland with very passionate fans and a great stadium, players love going there and pitching themselves against the Welsh,” Haskell said after making his return to international rugby as a second-half replacement against France at the weekend to help secure the 19-16 comeback victory.

“It is important to play our own game, understand Wales will come at us a very fired up side and you need to match that passion and worry about your own preparation and what you will do and deal with the game in little sections. If anything goes right, realise why it is going right and keep doing it. If something goes wrong, how can we adjust it on the spot? That is what sides have done there when we have won.”

England’s last trip across the River Severn proved exactly that. Whether part of the mind games that surround these fixtures or simply a statement of intent, England – led by Chris Robshaw back in 2015 – refused to take to the pitch until Wales were ready to do so. Robshaw was fully aware that the last time England ventured west, they were left in the dark for minutes before Wales emerged, and promptly suffered a 30-3 defeat that cost them the championship as well as the Grand Slam.

Instead, Robshaw and Sam Warburton faced off in the tunnel until both teams were forced to go out onto the pitch. Wales struck first, but England rallied from first 10-0 down and later 16-8 to triumph 16-21, adapting as the Haskell – the blindside flanker that day – acknowledges.

The memories for many on that Friday night were of Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ringing out within minutes of the start after Taulupe Faletau’s early try, but by the end it was those wearing white who were singing loudest.

“Everyone wants to beat England. Everyone is always hostile, especially to me,” Haskell adds. “The Millennium Stadium is up there. The Welsh are passionate fans. As a player it is a motivator. That is why we go through hell, we don't have time off and get beaten up to play in massive games at the Millennium Stadium, with passionate fans.

“English fans come down there and I will never forget we had Swing Low Sweet Chariot across the stadium. That is something you might never get again - but hopefully we will this weekend coming.”

The Wasps back-row as enjoyed something of a miraculous resurrection that could see him start this weekend’s fixture. Heading into the tournament, Haskell had one start for Wasps under his belt and one replacement appearance that ended 35 seconds later when he knocked himself out. Having suffered nasty toe injury last summer that ended his tour of Australia and ruled him out of the first half of the season, Haskell forced his way back into the squad for the Six Nations opener, and with an additional 16 minutes could very well start against Wales given that Tom Wood left Twickenham with his right arm in a sling.

“There was a long period of time where I thought I was never going to pull on a shirt, let alone get the chance to play for England again, so it was amazing to get the opportunity to come back in and play a small part in this result,” he explained.

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“I'm not a great watcher of rugby, full stop. I was champing at the bit to get on but I didn't want to get on too early as I wasn't sure I'd be able to last the course.

“If I'd had to come on after the first two minutes, I'd deal with it, I'm fit enough to do it, but it's so intense and so fast, you want to make sure you have the right impact. Having only played 60 minutes of rugby before, it would have been a big ask.”