Beckham gets behind Jonny

2003-10-07 13:34

Perth - David Beckham has sent good luck wishes to anxious England flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson ahead of the opening match of the Rugby World Cup.

Beckham, the England soccer captain and Real Madrid superstar, met rugby's most exciting talent while making a television commercial earlier in the year. The two clicked and have kept in contact.

"He's been very supportive," Wilkinson said on Tuesday. "He's passed on his best and that's fantastic. It was great working with him and he's a huge international figure and a captain of his country who knows what World Cups are about, so it's certainly a nice gesture."

Beckham led England to the 2002 soccer World Cup, where England was knocked out by Brazil in the quarter-finals.

He is best known for his deadly accurate freekicks and penalties and a successful movie, "Bend it like Beckham", traded on his wonderful kicking accuracy.

The pair have that ability with the boot in common, as well as the pressures of being the highest profile Englishmen in their respective codes.

Wilkinson's unerring accuracy, forged on a daily diet of monotonous kicking training, has been a major cornerstone of England's success over the past two years as it has won 16 of 17 Tests.

Wilkinson admitted on Tuesday he was nervous ahead of England's opening game, against Georgia on Sunday.

"I am desperately keen to get going and get some game time," Wilkinson said. "There's no worse feeling than hanging around with those nerves and anxiety but there is time to get some work done.

"When you feel strongly about something there always comes a nervousness about going at it."

He has set his aim at enjoying this World Cup more than his experience in 1999, when he was a member of the team beaten 44-21 by South Africa in the quarter-finals.

"It's important being able to appreciate the fantastic nature of the competition, the environment of being here with all the other teams," Wilkinson said. "Being able to appreciate rather than just slogging through each day is the key to be able to relax a bit."

Since the 1999 World Cup he has barely missed a day of kicking training and has also developed into a superb playmaker and hard defender.

His approach to training has been described as obsessive but Wilkinson said it was just a professional approach to his important role.

"It's the ethics of the way I work," said Wilkinson. "I've got this time now and, as a professional, I'm in a very, very fortunate position.

"I've got a lot of friends who'd like to be in this position. I've got time, the expertise around me and I've got the ambition and my own expectations."

All the ingredients, he says, "to make the most of it".

"To waste that opportunity would be pretty horrendous," he said.

- AP