Jonny Wilkinson on Friday night admitted his rugby instincts have been blunted by years on the treatment table and England manager Martin Johnson was right to drop him.

Toby Flood will start at fly-half against Grand Slam-chasing France on Saturday night after Wilkinson was axed for only the third time in his international career. The 30-year-old admitted he has been off the pace since returning to the England team last November after a year on the sidelines recovering from a serious knee injury.

He said: "I feel I am short in terms finding the instinct again. I have to try to get those habits back. At the moment it is a real challenge to go out there and consider more things than I used to."

Wilkinson added: "I'm giving everything I can. I know I am trying the right things but I have to refine and reassess.

"I know I'm not playing the way I want to, but I know I can get there and I desire nothing more than to get there."

Wilkinson said there was "no worse feeling" than to be dropped by England but he knows Johnson was right not to pick him.

Johnson has been guilty of ignoring Flood's impressive club form in recent weeks and the last thing Wilkinson wants is to be picked on reputation alone.

"I'm desperate to play as many times as I can for England but as long as it's right," said Wilkinson.

"I don't want to be playing for England if I'm not doing as good a job as someone else - if I'm not right to be there.

"What I don't want to be doing is not finding my best but just ticking boxes and saying, 'Yeah, that's great, I've got this many caps and this many points'. That won't help the team. You have to earn that right and I am in the process of doing that."