Jones ready to fire young guns against vulnerable England

There is something about the Welsh No 10 shirt that scares England witless, with good reason: Cliff Morgan tied the "human cravats" in knots at Twickenham in 1952, Barry John ran rings round them at the Arms Park in 1969, Jonathan Davies laughed in their faces in London in 1988, Neil Jenkins kicked them into oblivion at Wembley in 1999.

There is something about the Welsh No 10 shirt that scares England witless, with good reason: Cliff Morgan tied the "human cravats" in knots at Twickenham in 1952, Barry John ran rings round them at the Arms Park in 1969, Jonathan Davies laughed in their faces in London in 1988, Neil Jenkins kicked them into oblivion at Wembley in 1999.

Stephen Jones, the latest keeper of the flame, has yet to conjure anything quite so magical, but he did score a blinder of a try against the bloody English in the World Cup ­ a blow for the underdog that gives him comfort ahead of tomorrow's resumption of hostilities.

"I think we can safely say that England are the ones under pressure," Jones said yesterday, a few minutes before boarding the team bus and heading for the Severn Bridge. "We're a young side travelling to play the world champions on their home patch ­ an exciting prospect for any sportsman. From their perspective, they've just lost a game few people expected them to lose, and they're keen to present the defeat by Ireland as a blip, rather than something more serious. If we can play some football and maybe bust their defensive system as we did in Brisbane in November, it could be interesting."

As the Welsh demonstrated to the world and his wife on that warm Queensland night a little over four months ago, they have attacking runners to die for. Gareth Thomas, Iestyn Harris and the twinkle-toed Williams boys ­ Rhys and Shane ­ on the wings have played some exhilarating stuff this season, and the three tries they put past England during a quarter-final that has taken up long-term occupancy in a corner of the memory bank left the Red Dragonhood feeling rather good about themselves.

The way Jones tells it, that feelgood factor is still in place, despite recent defeats by Ireland and France ­ the first of which was calamitous.

"The facts are there, if you care to look," said the Llanelli stand-off, a favourite son of Stradey Park who, if less spectacular than the pyrotechnicians in the outer reaches of the Welsh back division, is nevertheless indispensable as the man who strikes the matches. "Our fitness has improved out of all recognition ­ that goes back to the work we did in camp before the World Cup ­ and the regionalisation of the professional game here has proved to be a step in the right direction. We're still a young team, but we are youngsters hardened by experience.

"We need some victories ­ perhaps just one against a top-four nation, which would reinforce the confidence we have in each other. Twickenham would be a heck of a place to do it. Can it happen? England have one of the best defences in world rugby. But we found a way to threaten them last time we met, and while they will have done some homework based on that match and there is little chance of them giving us the same amount of space on this occasion, we've improved since then. I'm certain of that."

In one sense, Jones has peaked at 26. With 310 Test points to his name, he has pushed Paul Thorburn, the Neath full-back who played between 1985 and 1991, into third place in the national scoring list. The one player ahead of him, Neil Jenkins of Pontypridd, accumulated more than 1,000 points. If Jones ever played this game in pursuit of personal glorification ­ and his worst enemy would not accuse him of being a headline-hunter ­ those days have passed. Few, if any, of the current team have been more instrumental in removing the personality element from the persistent politics surrounding Red Dragon affairs.

It is by no means certain that Jones will occupy the outside-half position this time next year. A new coach, Mike Ruddock, is preparing to take control, and he may favour a more exuberant individualist, a Ceri Sweeney or a Gavin Henson, in the pivot role. But the incumbent is as versatile as any Welsh midfielder since Bleddyn Bowen ­ Graham Henry, no less, considered him a natural inside centre ­ and is likely to be around for some seasons yet.

"I'm enjoying my international rugby more than ever, possibly because we're playing a style that suits our talents," Jones said. "These are interesting times. If we can just get that big win against a major world power, we'll move forward very quickly." And if that win should send England travelling backwards at the same speed, he would be doubly happy.