Wilkinson halfway back to his best

Jonny Wilkinson will make England coach Andy Robinson's New Year wish come true by starting Newcastle's Premiership match with Leeds on 27 December.

It will be almost a year to the day that he was forced out of a league match with Northampton with a shoulder problem that required surgery and threatened to end his career just a month after helping England to World Cup glory.

Wilkinson came on at half-time during Newcastle's 22-20 Powergen Cup sixth-round defeat at Saracens yesterday and missed three late kicks that would have won the match for the visitors.

Newcastle, the holders, trailed 17-5 at the break and their dramatic fightback was masterminded by Wilkinson, who had wanted to start.

He accepted the midweek decision by Rob Andrew, the club's director of rugby, to give him just 40 minutes with good grace, but is now ready for a full game.

With England starting their Six Nations campaign in Wales on 5 February, Wilkinson's return to fulltime action is right on cue.

He said: "Having been out for so long it's now a case of making sure I find the right recipe for enjoying myself on the pitch. Sarries deserved to win and I was just happy to be out there."

Full-back Mark van Gisbergen proved the key man for London Wasps as he collected 23 points in their 43-33 extra-time win at Bristol.

London Irish beat Worcester 9-6, while Harlequins lost 33-7 at Bath.