STEVE HANSEN has urged his brave Welsh side to drink in the euphoria of their stirring performance against the All Blacks - and use it as the force to stun England in the World Cup quarter-final next Sunday.
For the first time in years, Wales produced a display of genuine world class, despite eventually going down 53-37 to New Zealand in their final pool match on Sunday.
It has given what originally appeared to be a mis-match between Wales and England, the tournament favourites, a spicy edge.
Wales have not beaten England in their last five attempts. But where there is joy there is hope - and there was a distinct whiff of 'feelgood' swirling around the Welsh hotel in downtown Brisbane.
"We've got to use that euphoria to our best advantage," said Hansen as he acclaimed once more a performance which had New Zealand reeling when Shane Williams scored to put the Welsh in front 34-28.
"We're going to have to do it again. They'll stand up. Whether they can rise to the same level, we'll have to see. But no one expects us to win, so we've got nothing to lose.
"It doesn't matter whether you are playing in the Six Nations or a friendly or the World Cup; England-Wales games will always be England-Wales games. Whoever wins on Sunday takes the chocolate and stays, and the other team get a ticket to go home."
Not much candy has been dished out lately to long-suffering Welsh fans. So parlous was their form that as recently as the World Cup warm-up match against Scotland it seemed Hansen's job was in jeopardy, the critics
slating a team which appeared to surrender meekly at the first sign of resistance. But that is no longer true.
Hansen said: "There's no secret that Wales have been through tough times. "But you don't get immediate results overnight. We're not where we want to be but we're trying to grow as a rugby nation. We set a positive tone in qualifying and a positive message against the All Blacks. If we can all work together we'll get this rugby nation back to where we want it to be."
