England wing Watson ready for Nadolo test

England winger Anthony Watson has declared himself ready for a thorough test
of his all-round game when he goes up against Fijian winger Nemani Nadolo in
the Rugby World cup opening match at Twickenham on Friday.

The Fijian flyer Nadolo stands at 6ft 5in and weighs almost 282 pounds was
one of the stars of the Crusaders Super Rugby campaign that also featured several
All Blacks.

Nadolo was regularly the Crusaders go to man in Super Rugby earlier this year
and there will be no doubt that Fiji will doing whatever they can to get the
ball out wide to him.

Watson who is no shrinking violet himself at 6ft 2in and 205 pounds but he
will have the job of containing the Fijian powerhouse.

The goal-kicking Crusaders Nadolo is one of the best finishers in the game,
having been the joint-leading try scorer in the 2014 southern hemisphere Super
Rugby tournament and adding nine more tries for the New Zealand side this year.

For the 21-year-old Watson, looking to add to his five tries in 11 Tests, confronting
Nadolo will prove an acid test of his defensive game.

“I’ve got tremendous respect for him as a player,” Watson,
said of Nadolo.

“He’s a world-class winger. I’m approaching it like I would
playing against (Wales’) George North. “

“Fiji have got the ability to counter-attack from anywhere,” said
Watson. “So defensively we’re going to have to be on the money in
all areas of the pitch. We can’t switch off for a second otherwise they’ll
take advantage. It will be a good challenge for us.”

Yet for all the talk of England wearing down Fiji up front as the best way
to subdue the Pacific Islanders, Watson hopes the tournament opener will see
the backs showing their skills.

“We would like to think we can punish them from all areas of the pitch.
While Fiji are always looking to do that, we pick and choose our moments when
it’s on. And if it is on, then hopefully we can take advantage.”