I'd get a kick out of Jonny eclipsing me, says Jenkins

Jonny Wilkinson starts the Six Nations needing a below average return to overhaul the sky-scraping total of 1,091 Test points by the end of the championship and the old master considers it only a matter of time.

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'Most definitely it will go before much longer,' Jenkins said. 'And nobody will be more than deserving of it than Jonny because of the huge amount of work he has put into his game over the years.'

Wales under Warren Gatland can only hope they somehow escape the fearful toll which Wilkinson has exacted on previous Welsh teams directed by New Zealand coaches Graham Henry and Steve Hansen.

In seven matches, England's fly half has averaged a fraction less than 20 points against Wales compared to 16 against Australia and New Zealand, 15 against France, 14 against Ireland and 13 against South Africa.

Jenkins has held the record since eclipsing Michael Lynagh's 911 during the World Cup against Australia in October 1999. Twenty four hours later, Wilkinson came off the bench against South Africa and has been chipping away at it ever since, except for the three years spent putting himself back together.

England suddenly have an abundance of fly halves — Danny Cipriani, Charlie Hodgson, Olly Barkley, Toby Flood, Ryan Lamb and Shane Geraghty — but Jenkins is in no doubt who will be there at No 10 come Saturday.

'They have some excellent choices but Jonny deserves to be there,' said Jenkins. 'He's going to be as massive a threat as he has always been. It isn't just that he scores points for fun. He knows when to pass, when to kick. His record speaks for itself — he's the best.

'He was excellent when he came back at the World Cup and when you consider he was carrying some sort of injury, you get an idea of how tough a player he is.

'He's as tough as anyone I've seen. Most people going through what he's been through would have said: "I've had enough, I don't want to do it any more". Not him. He drives himself back through his desire to be the best.

'I saw it for myself during the Lions tour of Australia in 2001. What stood out was how much work he did. For any kicking he always practiced with either foot. Some of the stuff he did with his supposedly weaker right foot was of incredible quality so it was hardly surprising when he won the World Cup with a drop-goal off his right foot.'

Jenkins, retained by Gatland as kicking coach, can only hope Wilkinson falls way short of his 20-point average against Wales.

'Your discipline has to be very good,' he said. 'We gave away so many penalties last August for Jonny to stick in the corner that they scored seven tries from five metres. You have to limit his scoring potential, which is easier said than done.'

Forever remembered for the conversion of the wondrous Scott Gibbs try when Wales ambushed the English Grand Slam during the last Five Nations match nine years ago, Jenkins now hopes to play his part in another upset.

In that respect, James Hook will hope to start where he finished in Cardiff last March, when his six goals proved enough to beat England 27-18. Wales, aware of the problems suffered by the putative English full back, Mathew Tait, at Leicester last weekend, have been exuding self-belief since Shaun Edwards joined forces with Gatland last week.

They believe the accuracy and variety of their kicking game, through Gavin Henson as well as Hook, will be destructive.

'It's more vital than ever to have as wide a range of kicking options as possible,' said Jenkins. 'Hook will learn a great deal from just being alongside Shaun. With his winning mentality, I can understand why Warren wanted him.

'James is going into the second year in Tests, which is always the hardest, but he and Cipriani look as though they will be battling it out in years to come as the best in the northern hemisphere.

'I've been very impressed by Gav since he came back. He's on top of his game and seems to be back where he was during the Grand Slam three years ago.'

Top scorers in Tests

Neil Jenkins (Wales & Lions)- 1,091

Jonny Wilkinson (England & Lions) - 1,043

Diego Dominguez (Italy & Arg)- 1,010

Michael Lynagh (Australia) - 911

Percy Montgomery (South Africa) - 873

Ronan O'Gara (Ireland) - 784

Daniel Carter (New Zealand) - 678