Rugby legend Martin Johnson issues England v Wales verdict after BBC pundit left stunned
England legend Martin Johnson believes Wales will provide a tougher test for Steve Borthwick's team in their Six Nations curtain-raiser this weekend, despite being shocked by how they collapsed at the Principality Stadium last year.
Steve Tandy's squad travel to Twickenham on Saturday as overwhelming outsiders, having failed to register a championship victory since March 2023 and claiming the Wooden Spoon in the last two tournaments. In stark contrast, England come into the game on an 11-match unbeaten run and are seen as the main challengers to defending champions France for this year's crown. Wales and England met on the final weekend of last year's championship in what ended up being one of the bleakest days in Welsh rugby history, as Borthwick's side crossed for 10 tries at the Principality Stadium as they inflicted a record 68-14 humiliation on Wales.
Johnson was in Cardiff that afternoon on punditry duties for the BBC and admits that Wales' fate was sealed almost immediately, with fellow pundit Sam Warburton left stunned when Maro Itoje registered the opening score for the visitors after merely three minutes. However, in a conversation as part of Greene King's new 'Fans Reunited' initiative - which encourages patrons to reconnect with friends by watching Six Nations matches at their pubs - the 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning captain said that while he predicts an England victory, he is anticipating a different type of match at Twickenham this weekend.
"I think England will win, but that's not rocket science," he said. "Who would have thought it would have been the score it was last year in Cardiff? England scored after just a few minutes last year, and far too easily.
"I remember doing the TV and I looked over at Sam Warburton and he was like, 'Christ, you can't concede that simple a try at that stage of the game. That's a try you concede in the last four minutes when you've already won the game, not the first four minutes.'
"The writing was on the wall very early last year. Wales, obviously, have got to stay in the game as long as they can, make it difficult and give themselves belief and hope and go from there. Often, when you do that, you find yourselves in a game, then it's anyone's."
Johnson added: "While I think England will win, I don't think it will be as big or as comfortable as people are making out. It's the first game of the tournament, Wales should be off their boxes for that game in terms of getting stuck in. They've got nothing to lose.
"What if they charge a kick down or intercept a pass? If they get down there and score and England are half-asleep and they go 10-nil down after 20 minutes, they don't look so cool then.
"It's not outside the realm of possibility that Wales could put in a really good performance and make it tough. I think they will make it a lot tougher than people are expecting, to be honest."
Whilst he doesn't believe Wales will endure the same humiliation they experienced at home to England last March - something which he says English supporters took no pleasure in witnessing - Johnson anticipates another challenging campaign for Tandy's side, with a shortened competition set to leave them at a disadvantage.
"It's going to be a tough tournament for them, I think, it's five games in six weeks," said the 55-year-old. "It's going to be attritional, squad depth will be more important in this tournament than ever before. If you start picking up injuries and losses, then it could get tough, but then that's the same for anyone.
"I don't think any English fans in Cardiff last year took any delight in that performance and winning like that," he added. "It's interesting, I've been doing TV work for six and seven years and it seems like every year the Welsh fans are like, 'Oh, we're not going to be very good this year.'
"Somehow for three or four years of that, they were, they played well and won the Grand Slam in 2019 and another title in 2021. A lot of the old guard were playing well and still getting rolled out, and that just seems to have ended all in one go.
"It's left a squad with not a huge amount of experience in there, probably short of world-class players and you've got a lot of young guys in there thrown in, trying to find their way, which is difficult."
Wales have been afforded virtually no prospect of launching their new Six Nations campaign with a victory this weekend, with England not only overwhelming favourites for Saturday's encounter, but backed to compete for their first championship since 2020.
While such a label is hardly surprising, Johnson remains cautious about the burden of expectation on Borthwick's side and insists a strong start is required this weekend to show they can handle the pressure.
"You hear lots of things in tournaments that you've got to set your stall out," he said. "Just go out there and get the game won, then go from there.
"Before the tournament, everyone is making their predictions and everyone thinks England are going to win this game comfortably, I always worry when people think like that. That's the overriding thought, because that's where you get yourself into trouble.
"I think there's more expectation on England and that's what I'm worried about. They've got to deal with that. If they don't beat Wales comfortably or people criticise the performance, [the expectation] doesn't always ring true.
"Good teams play well," Johnson added. "It doesn't matter who the opposition is, you go out there, hit your standard of performance and go from there. That's what England need to do."
Martin Johnson was speaking as part of Greene King's 'Fans Reunited' campaign, which is giving customers the opportunity to reconnect with friends by watching a Guinness Six Nations match at one of their pubs. Those that do, will be offered a pint on the house (Terms and conditions apply).
"Rugby has a unique way of bringing people together," said Johnson. "Friendships formed through sport are unbreakable, and the ones that endure last a lifetime - exactly what Greene King's Fans Reunited campaign celebrates.
"Combined with the atmosphere of the pub, it takes the experience to the next level.