The Wales skipper knows just how intimidating a place England’s fortress can be for a Welshman having been on the wrong end of plenty of hidings in the past.
For eight of the Wales team, more than half, the visit was a whole new experience in their short, sharp lesson in international rugby, having never before stood inside the walls of fortress Twickenham until yesterday.
After Ireland had wrecked England’s unbeaten run, Charvis believes the home of the Rugby World Cup no longer strikes fear into the heart of Wales after a brave display.
“The last few times we have gone to Twickenham we have started really well for the first twenty minutes only to see England take it away from us,” he said. “The result was that we suffered some record defeats and a lot of pain.
“For the young guys in the team and the whole squad, we now know that if we take the game to them and play for eighty minutes then we have a really good chance of competing with England.
“That’s probably the most important thing we can take from this disappointing defeat. We knew we could not give England a piggy-back or relax at all because a side like that will punish you.
“So at half-time, when we were 16-9 behind, we just told ourselves to go out there and take the game to them. There were only forty minutes of the game left and we knew we had to ask them some serious questions.
“I think we did that but unfortunately it just wasn’t enough in the end. However we can take a lot from this game and the lessons we have learned.”
The win sets up a potential RBS Six Nations decider next week in Paris between England and France though Charvis was unwilling to back either side.
“It will depend a lot on which England side turns up, the one that won the Rugby World Cup or the one that has had a few problems with all the changes in the team,” he said. “From living in France I know how bitter the French are from what happened in the Rugby World Cup and how desperate they are to put things right.”
