© (Photo credit should read GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images)

Our correspondents from Twickenham, the Millennium Stadium and Kingsholm round up the key talking points from England's win over Ireland, Wales' narrow injury-marred triumph over Italy and Japan's last-gasp victory against Georgia in the Monday Maul.

The double-edged sword of home advantage

It was all a little bit different at Twickenham on Saturday. The gates to enter the ground were in a different area, established practises like the picnics in the West Car Park that had withstood the ever-modernising demands of professional rugby were replaced by grand white gazebos. This was no place for independent food sellers; the corporate beast was in full flow.

It was a case of same, same but different but that old concrete block sitting atop an old cabbage patch is one of England's most potent weapons heading into the home World Cup. Three of the seven World Cups have been won by the host nation, there are no guarantees that if you are on terra firma you have a divine right to lift 'Old Bill'. That magical figure of 600 caps in a starting XV does correlate to World Cup success, but without that behind Stuart Lancaster's side, they will hope that the Twickenham factor will pay dividends.

England have seven straight Test wins to their name at Twickenham. Even though they will be the designated 'away team' for two of their four pool games - something they prepared for at the weekend against Ireland by taking the away changing room for their match against Ireland - Lancaster highlighted HQ as one of the reasons why the pendulum of the World Cup may just swing in their favour.

"Home advantage is one without a doubt," Lancaster said of where advantages can be found. "We're a very difficult team to beat here because we've got a very good win ratio and the confidence is built from consistently playing well.

"But also the work that we've done in camp, and the belief that we've generated over the last three years, it's intensive. It's not just the team spirit which obviously ever team's got, but day in day out I can see us defending well against each other, attacking well, and it's just putting all those bits and pieces together for the full 80 for 7 games. That's the challenge within, but everyone's got that."

The class of 2003 did not have that behind them but it is a prospect which excites Jason Robinson so much that it sparks his rugby DNA. "There's not much that separates failure and success, you won't win games on 80 per cent," Robinson told ESPN. "It's so exciting, this home World Cup. I'm starting to get envious. Over the last few years I have never thought about whether I'd still want to be playing but the stage these guys have and playing at home, they have a chance to do what we did in 2003. The whole nation will be behind them and the Twickenham factor will be massive."

But with home advantage come potential pitfalls. Though the England team will know the corridors and Twickenham pitch better than any opposition team, the pressure of a home World Cup can do weird things to a team - take France in 2007 for example - as Robinson's 2003 team-mate Neil Back highlights.

"If harnessed correctly, it can be a huge advantage," Back told ESPN. "Home advantage in sport is seen as a huge gain over every sport. It shouldn't be players should be mentally strong enough for both home and away. But it brings pressure. It's how well this relatively inexperienced group can cope with the pressure and expectation. It's intriguing. England are one of the teams that can win it but at least a third of the teams can go the whole way." (Tom Hamilton)

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Timely wake-up call for Wales

Wales' ill-fated win over Italy on Saturday evening is not one that head coach Warren Gatland will ever return to with relish; however often certain events replay in his mind. But, putting aside the potentially damaging injuries sustained by Leigh Halfpenny and Rhys Webb, could it have given the squad a timely jolt?

Cardiff seemed strangely subdued before kick-off, and as fans filed leisurely into the Millennium Stadium they were given little reason to lift the mood. Wales had problems before Italy arrived on Saturday, now they must be addressed. Ironically, if Liam Williams trains well this week then Halfpenny's absence - purely in full-back terms - may not be as keenly felt. That said, Alex Cuthbert's performance on the wing would not have instilled confidence in him starting were Williams moved back - and therein lies the problem. Neither Jake Ball nor Dominic Day excelled in the second-row either, while Tomas Francis also struggled against an experienced Azzurri front row. These are positions where Wales already had concerns and needed those in reserve to step up. That they weren't able to against committed but limited opposition shows there is work to be done.

Luckily for the Welsh, their head coach is not adverse to a bit of hard graft. "We spoke in the changing room afterwards, we're not happy and the players have got to have a close look at their own performance and just put that aside," Gatland said. "What we're good at as a side is putting those things behind us and not dwelling on that and not letting any negativity get to us." On a more jovial note, he added: "The message is 'don't read any newspapers'." (Martyn Thomas)

From a dislocated hip to match-winner

Amanaki Mafi's last-gasp try to secure Japan's thrilling warm-up victory over Georgia was the perfect tonic to a difficult nine months for the number eight.

Mafi's chances of making the Brave Blossoms' World Cup squad were put in serious doubt last December when he dislocated a hip. Head coach Eddie Jones was happy to see his back-rower come through unscathed.

"He's so pleased at the moment - he dislocated his hip nine months ago. Now he's playing Test rugby for Japan. It's unbelievable," Jones said after his side's victory in Gloucester. "He's such an important player for us. He came on and made three important carries. When you're playing against Georgia, you need players who can dent the line. He came on and created momentum - we had some really good play off the back of that. We need guys like him at his best."

However, Jones was left bemused over the manner of Mafi's match-winning try. "It's a bizarre way to win a game for Japan. Scoring a maul try against Georgia. Who would have thought of that?"

The Kiwi also had slight 'praise' for flanker Hendrik Tui, who featured on the wing against the Lelos. "If we need to use him as a wing in the World Cup, we can now," Jones said. "We know it can be reasonably successful. But he's definitely no Jonah Lomu!" (Rob Bartlett)

Parisse leads Italy by example

It is often said that a week is a long time in politics and Italy proved on Saturday that it can seem an entirety in rugby too. The Azzurri had capitulated in their previous warm-up against Scotland, shipping 48 points and falling apart at the scrum. In Cardiff they were a completely different proposition. They arrived with the air of a team who meant business, running through full lineout drills before their opponents had even left the changing rooms as they warmed up with intensity. That preparation was then transported into the game where a focused performance yielded 56 per cent of possession, 52 per cent of territory and ensured the Azzurri made more than 300 metres with the ball in hand. Not exactly numbers that Jacques Brunel's side can normally rely on, even if they did come up short again in the one that matters.

One of the major factors in their improvement was returning captain Sergio Parisse. He is a man who commands respect and leads by example. He did just that with his second-minute intercept and dash, and although his stray arm later left a mark on Alex Cuthbert's head, this was another performance with which he set the bar high. He admitted after the game that Italy are not good enough to just turn up and beat the likes of Wales, Ireland or France. But when facing a team that includes the 113-cap No.8 the opposition know that if they slip up, the Azzurri can pounce. "We must be focused and think that if we play at 100 per cent the teams that play against us must play at 100 per cent as well," Parisse said. "If not they can lose against Italy." (Martyn Thomas)