Wales’ Ken Owens: England will teach us a lesson if we don’t improve

Wales player Ken Owens. Pic: Stu Forster/Getty

England head coach Eddie Jones has already started the mind games by describing Owens and company as “the greatest Welsh side ever”.

But for hooker Owens, who made his first appearance against England during Wales’ 2012 Grand Slam campaign, it is like water off a duck’s back.

“Perhaps early on in my career, you would get caught up in the hype. My first start for Wales was at Twickenham, which was a huge experience,” Scarlets forward Owens said.

“But you just need to concentrate on what the important thing is, and that’s the 80 minutes on the Saturday and delivering what you can control and controlling those controllables.

“We have had two wins on the road, but we need to get better. If we don’t, and England play as they have in the last two games, they will teach us a lesson.

“They are a quality team, but so are we. The top two teams in the Six Nations, currently, will be going at it to maintain an unbeaten record.”

Recent history in the fixture favours England, having claimed five successive Six Nations victories against Wales, but they will encounter an opponent unbeaten for a record-equalling 11 games.

“It’s about imposing ourselves on England and keep asking questions of them, as I am sure they will be looking to ask questions of us. It’s about just getting stuck into them, really,” Owens said.

“These home games are won on emotion too, and it’s about how you control that. Training will be a little bit tasty, which it needs to be with what is coming up. You just build it up, and come Saturday, you can let it all out.”