Rejuvenated and, above all, injury free following his move to France, England golden boy Jonny Wilkinson reveals he is looking forward to the challenge of playing in the Six Nations again.

Q. How 's life in France? I 've read that you 'll be extending your stay , you must be happy there?

A. I am very happy here in Toulon. I love the region, the people, the culture, the team, the squad and I don 't mind the weather as well. I also really enjoy the feeling of broadening horizons that comes with challenging your comfort zone. Living and working in a foreign country has done that for me and speaking another language is a joy. How would you rate your current form? I struggle with the concept of form to be honest. For me, I train, prepare and play with everything I have got every time that I go into the gym or onto the field. The way things turn out is sometimes out of our control and there have been many times that I have felt I have done things well and they 've not been successful. There have been many times when I have made big mistakes and somehow I 've gotten away with it. At the moment, the biggest challenge for me is adapting my game to fit a new team and a new league. I am really enjoying learning how to get the best out of a brand new set of teammates too.

Q. Has the change of scenery helped you get over your injury problems?

A. I guess I 'll never know for sure but I certainly felt that perhaps I was trapped in a kind of negative energy field that seemed to be spiraling out of control. It had absolutely nothing to do with where I was playing or who I was playing for because I love Newcastle. It just appeared that I was always getting hurt and never really playing. The hardest thing was that it didn 't seem to matter what I did , whether I worked incredibly hard or took time out to recover. The injuries got worse and worse and I was heading towards an early exit from rugby. For some reason I feel I have been able to break that cycle here.

Q. How difficult was it, when you were going from one injury to the next?

A. At times I was forced, I feel, to confront the question of whether I could really do this anymore and whether or not it was safe to do so with regard to my future well being. The worst feeling of all though was the amount of time spent on the sidelines watching everyone else playing and moving forward. I began to feel very, very isolated and struggled with losing my identity as a rugby player and as a result, in my own warped way, my worth as a person. Going through those injuries and experiencing those feelings, however, afforded me the opportunity to grow as a person and discover a better, healthier way to view myself and my career.

Q. How would you compare the Jonny Wilkinson now, to the one in 2003?

A. I 'd like to think I have evolved in a good way both in life on and off the field. I have a more rounded and balanced outlook and lifestyle, but the drive to succeed has never been so strong. In that respect I am definitely happy with where I 've ended up, especially considering that what has happened in those last six years has not exactly been what I would have expected or wanted, nor has it been plain sailing.

Q. How did it feel to pull on an England shirt again in the autumn, after 18 months away?

A. It felt magnificent, it always does and it, I imagine, always will. It was actually kind of a nice feeling to experience all those gut wrenching nerves again. The squad is great , as are the coaching staff , and it was a true pleasure. I found I immediately progressed as a player because of the experience too.

Q. It 's been a couple of years since you played in the Six Nations. Are you looking forward to it?

A. It is a fabulous tournament, the Six Nations. I am indeed very much looking forward to the out of our control and there have been many times that I have felt I have done things well and they 've not been successful. There have been many times when I have made big mistakes and somehow I 've gotten away with it. At the moment, the biggest challenge for me is adapting my game to fit a new team and a new league. I am really enjoying learning how to get the best out of a brand new set of teammates too.

Q. You played with Martin Johnson for many years , what 's it like having him as your coach with England now?

A. It is a pleasure because it gives me a great feeling to know that someone of his caliber and values is in that position. It can only be a good thing that he is there. I only wish he was still able to play.

Q. Do you think he can be successful with England?

A. Of course, the effect he has had already had has been enormous. The players have an added degree of confidence and belief and the opportunity to express themselves more too. For me, the more time we can spend and play together as an entire squad then the better we are going to get, so every moment is vitally important.

Q. The autumn series wasn 't the best for England , where does the side need to improve for the Six Nations?

A. As a squad we need to continue to get accustomed with the way each of us likes to play, but we also need to continue to execute things with more precision. It is often a more simple excuse to say we need more time, and it is absolutely true, but that doesn 't change the fact that the most important time is definitely now, and how well we act and react will determine how quickly we improve and ultimately how successful we are.

Q. Were you pleased with your own form in the autumn internationals?

A. As a few people may know by now I am very seldom happy with the way I play. I did my best and I gave all I had on the training field and on the pitch on match day.What I took from the experiences was enormously valuable and the opportunity to learn at that level is great. Needless to say I enjoyed myself too.

Q. What can we expect from England in this year 's Six Nations?

A. I hope that we are able to put all our hard work and ambition into practice and show what we as a team and individuals are capable of doing. As ever, I am sure there will be absolutely no shortage of effort and desire to succeed throughout the week and at the weekend.

Q. Do you think England can get back to the sort of form we saw in 2003?

A. We don 't want to get back to that sort of form because it wouldn 't stand up in today 's game, against today 's players. What I believe we are in the process of doing is building a brand new future and identity for the squad, one which will take us through the next few seasons and into theWorld Cup with the confidence and belief to win. The best way to achieve that, in my opinion, is to try to create some momentum in the short term with some top performances and a lot of good results. So that brings us back to where we stand now which is an exciting place to be and a brilliant thing to be part of.