Jamie Hosie chatted to Welsh centre Gavin Henson, who explained why he thought Wales will beat England this weekend… but might struggle to do the same against Fiji.

JH: Hi Gavin. There’s only one place we can start, of course – England vs Wales this weekend. What are your thoughts on the game? Can Wales get a positive result?

GH: “I’m pretty positive about this game, I just feel like we know how to beat England. I think we’ve got the game to do it, with our defence – the way we defended against Ireland away a couple of weeks ago, if they can bring that line-speed against England, they’ll struggle to cope.

“Obviously England have changed their team and brought in Burgess and Farrell, so perhaps they’re planning a more direct game.”

So, you fancy Wales to win this weekend – does that mean you think they’ll get out of the group?

“I’m confident they’re going to beat England. But then, from what I’ve seen of Fiji, I’m a little bit worried about how we’ll go against them. There’s that history, the World Cup back in 2007 when we lost to them, but also looking at that Fiji team, they’re massive, physical, and they play a decent game.

“I think we might struggle against them, and also we have a four day turnaround after the England game. There are going to be some sore bodies, and then having to front up against a team like Fiji will be tough. Although I think we’ll beat England, I don’t think that means we’ll qualify. There’s still a lot to do.”

Those changes in the England midfield that you mentioned have certainly raised quite a few eyebrows. What do you make of the decision to make such radical changes?

“I think it’s a huge risk. It’s probably forced on them because of JJ’s injury, but it’s two centres playing together for the first time, and obviously Burgess isn’t very experienced in that centre position.

“They’re up against Jamie Roberts, one of the best centres in World Rugby, and Scott Williams, who is probably the in form centre in Wales. So I can’t see those England players doing very well against our boys – I think we’ll win that battle there. Farrell is coming in for a first start for a while – I think we’ve definitely got the edge there in the backline.”

As someone who has spent plenty of time playing in the centres, what do you make of Burgess in the midfield?

“I was briefly with him at Bath – he runs some great lines. I always thought he’d be a six, he always seemed like a back row player to me. It’ll be interesting to see how England use him at 12.

“He’s very direct, and hes a very good tackler, so I suppose that could work. It’s very early days still. When I was with him he was very raw. In a test match, against Wales, he’s going to be properly tested, and we can all judge him properly after that.”

Wales have had some horrendous luck with injuries, most notably Halfpenny – how big a loss is he for Wales? Is he irreplaceable?

“You can’t argue with his kicking game and his defence – they’re incredible. But I do think he’re replaceable, and Liam Williams, in the form that he was last season, he’s an able replacement – he even gives us a bit more attacking-wise which I think will help our backline, and Dan Biggar. I don’t think Biggar gets much of a voice outside him, and I think Liam Willams can be a ball player.”

You sadly had some bad luck with injuries before World Cups in the past – what advice would you give to guys like Halfpenny and Webb, who are missing this opportunity?

“Personally I’ve never been to a World Cup, I’ve got injured just before every time. I don’t know how you deal with it, to be honest. I always struggled; it’s a very low time you go through.

“At least Halfpenny has been to a World Cup before; it’s probably a bit tougher on Rhys Webb, where he hasn’t been to one yet. They’ve both had long term injuries before, they know how to come back from it. They’ll come back stronger – it’s what you’ve got to do.”

So, are you expecting a call from Gatland any day now?

“Haha, yeah maybe. They haven’t called James Hook in yet, have they? I think it’s probably him, and then after that, I hope it might be me then. You never know, I’m probably about two away!”

Gavin Henson launched the Paddy Power ‘Message Wall’ at the St. Marys Street shop, Cardiff. Visit the shop and leave your cheeky ‘Good Luck’ message to the England team for the Rugby World Cup.