Last summer Billy Twelvetrees was training alongside Jamie Roberts and Jonathan Davies in Australia. As England prepare for a reunion with Wales in a crucial Six Nations encounter, he is relishing the challenge of lining up against them, claiming the "Twickenham factor" will help his side exact revenge for a bitter defeat in Cardiff last year.
Friends will become foes on Sunday afternoon in south-west London, when England entertain Wales in a seminal fixture 12 months after Stuart Lancaster's side were emphatically denied a Six Nations grand slam at a vociferous Millennium Stadium.
Twelvetrees, a late replacement in that fixture with the result already decided, insists belief in the England squad is sky high after a tense victory over Ireland, claiming their home advantage this weekend will prove a key factor. "I think it [strength at home] showed in the autumn and whoever has come here knows we give it our all. Against New Zealand in the autumn we gave it absolutely everything and weren't as clinical as we could have been and could have won the game," Twelvetrees said.
"It was exactly the same against Ireland. We had huge belief coming from behind and winning the game. Doing it at Twickenham makes it extra special. The Twickenham factor always gives you an extra per cent. I can't put a number on it, but it gives you that extra belief and extra bit of energy when you are blowing that little bit harder. It is a fantastic place to play."
England and Wales are level on four points with France and Ireland in the Six Nations standings, and whichever side falls to defeat this weekend will effectively be out of the reckoning.
Twelvetrees, a late call-up to Warren Gatland's British & Irish Lions squad after a series of injuries last year, did not play during the tour of Australia but described his experience as rewarding, learning from the Welshmen Roberts and Davies as the Lions secured a famous series victory.
The Gloucester centre will go face-to-face with Roberts in the backline on Sunday. He admits the Racing Métro centre is a player he looks up to, but insists his opponent's prowess will not overawe him in the heat of the battle, saying England are focusing on their own gameplan rather than that of their rivals.
"He is a top-class player and he's shown that in the years he has played for Wales and for the Lions. He's always making breaks and getting over the gain line. He is one of these players you look up to and he's such a good professional as well," said Twelvetrees.
"Their [Wales's] centre partnership is definitely a threat but, like I said, it is one of those ones you look forward to. When you play against any of the Six Nations sides you relish playing against the best players to get the best out of you.
"You mix with [Lions] guys and you want to learn off them. I did with as many as I could out there, it is a great opportunity to learn off people you will never probably play with before or again and it is something you look forward to. You try to pick up little habits off each other and see what works well for them."
Asked about Davies's return for Wales, after a four-month absence, and his performances for the Lions last year, Twelvetrees added: "I thought he was outstanding out there. I think a lot of the players would agree he was probably one of the best and deserved his place in the side. He was consistently really good, has a great left foot and is a very clever player.
"He is always making breaks and is very physical in defence and I think like all their backline a lot of them are very dangerous players and coming together, they are a very strong side.
"It is something you look forward to and want to play against the best players in the world and Wales have a lot of them. It is up to us to take it to them and enjoy the challenge."
Twelvetrees has not played against Roberts before for country or club. England will look to build on an encouraging display against Ireland and set up a crunch final weekend of the tournament.
The 25-year-old's defensive game shone against the Irish and he and Luther Burrell demonstrated impressive resolve in the face of Brian O'Driscoll and Gordon D'Arcy.
"You play quality players all the time and we have a squad here with England of class players," he said. "If one player gets injured or doesn't get picked then another guy comes in who's a very good player.
"We've huge confidence in the squad of what we can do and we're a very close group who get on well on and off the pitch and it reflects in what we're doing. We go out there with a huge amount of confidence."
