No love lost as Warren Gatland singles out Dylan Hartley

Gatland's comments are clearly aimed at getting under the skin of feisty forward Hartley, who is expected to pack down alongside Andrew Sheridan and Dan Cole in England's front row at the Millennium Stadium on 4 February.

Gatland said: "We were pleased with the way our lineout went in the autumn. England's imploded a little bit against South Africa, and a couple of weeks ago I saw Hartley go to pieces (for Northampton) against Leicester.

"He's always got a lot to say, hasn't he? Let's see what he has got to offer and how he fronts up against us."

Gatland indicated that Northampton captain Hartley did not endear himself to the Wales camp following incidents during two explosive Heineken Cup clashes between Saints and Cardiff Blues before Christmas.

Hartley and Blues hooker Gareth Williams were sin-binned after a flare-up in the Pool One encounter at Franklin's Gardens, with the players exchanging words as they left the field.

Blues' Wales scrum-half Richie Rees then received a 12-week ban after being cited for making contact with the eye area of Hartley during the return fixture a week later. Hartley gave evidence by telephone to Rees' subsequent disciplinary hearing in Dublin.

Gatland added: "He was responsible with some of his evidence for Richie Rees being banned for a long period, and he was not prepared to step outside to the back of the stand with Gareth Williams when invited to do so, so we will see how he fronts up against us."

Meanwhile, Northampton loose forwards Tom Wood and Phil Dowson have been added to England's squad.

England manager Martin Johnson turned to the Saints duo following injuries to captain Lewis Moody and Leicester flanker Tom Croft.

Tigers lock George Skivington has also been drafted into the squad as a replacement for the injured Courtney Lawes.

Bath's Nick Abendanon has been promoted from the Saxons to provide full-back cover after Delon Armitage was banned for eight weeks, although the London Irish man will appeal against that suspension.

All four players have joined the England squad on their pre-Six Nations training camp in Portugal, along with Hendre Fourie. The Leeds flanker suffered a calf injury in Sunday's game against Bucharest and he is being assessed by England's medical staff.

Johnson is remaining tight-lipped over who will captain England into the championship. Lewis Moody is out injured, with Nick Easter expected to take over, but no confirmation will be forthcoming until next week.