Shane Williams column: That Twickenham horrow show will be a blessing in disguise

The only positive for Wales to take out of their pretty desperate performance against England last Sunday was at least that wasn't against the All Blacks. Few were giving Wales much chance of winning in New Zealand before that result – now most people will think they will be lucky to avoid a hammering.
Had Wales not got that game out of their system, against England, then I fear New Zealand would easily have put 50 or 60 points on us.
I don't think there was anything radically wrong with Wales, but they just looked tired, one-paced and totally off the mark at Twickenham. Hopefully it was just a one-off and those things can quickly be ironed out in training. The main thing is having 80 minutes of Test rugby under their belts.
The statistics for the match made grim reading for Warren Gatland and his players but as painful as losing to England ever can be, Gatland will be immensely grateful for that game. Even the result could be a blessing in disguise – albeit a very good disguise.
Bizarrely for Wales, they started really well and held momentum in the first quarter – but then just slipped away. The usual accusation levelled at Wales is that they start slowly and leave themselves too much to do, just as we saw at Twickenham in the Six Nations, but this was the complete opposite.
When they started so brightly last week I really thought we were in for an exciting 80 minutes from Wales. They had players taking up good positions and running good lines. That was summed up by their first try when Jamie Roberts crashed through at an angle and Rob Evans was in close support for Rhys Webb to hand him an easy score.
It was pretty simple but very effective. Wales looked comfortable and as if they were a team that had been together for a while and were ready to go. But the second half was a complete reverse. They looked disjointed, disorganised and tired.
It was England's players who looked fitter, sharper and more comfortable on the ball. But let's not forget, they are the Six Nations champions and looking a very good side now. I really fancy England to take at least one of their Tests against Australia.
The bif worry for Wales was that their forwards looked as though they had forgotten how to execute a lineout drive. We also struggled to hold onto possession for any amount of time to build any sort of pressure and then they started falling off tackles.
If we do that against the All Blacks, it's going to be a landslide.
I'm sure there were a few hair-dryer moments straight after that performance and I can't imagine defence coach Shaun Edwards will have been at all happy with 20 missed tackles. That's just not like Wales.
The result could have been far worse had George Ford not had a shocker in front of goal, but once the dust has settled, there will be a lot of honest talking. It is a massive kick up the  backside for Wales ahead of the toughest task in world rugby – facing the All Blacks in New Zealand.
The match also served a purpose of getting some precious game-time for key players. Alun Wyn Jones had not played for three months while the likes of Scott Williams, Liam Williams and Samson Lee have been seriously limited in recent months.
On the wing Hallam Amos, left, gave one of his liveliest displays for Wales and I think has done enough to start next week. It was great to see him looking so confident and exciting with the ball.
The rest of the team had also not played for three weeks and none of them in the sort of intense knock-out games that England's players had in the Premiership play-offs and Europe.
That would account for why Wales faded so badly and were off the pace. So with another week's tough preparation in New Zealand, I'm pretty confident they will be a lot better. A defeat like that sharpens the mind and focusses everyone on the task ahead.
Wales will also have Sam Warburton, Luke Charteris and Jonathan Davies back into contention and I wouldn't be surprised if all three start at Eden Park.
Warburton is an obvious choice though the injury to Dan Lydiate is a big blow. You know you're going to have to tackle for 80 minutes against the All Blacks and that's a big part of Lydiate's game.
But I have been excited about Ross Moriarty and he could take some of the ball-carrying burden off Taulupe Faletau.
Luke Charteris is in excellent form after helping Racing 92 to the Champions Cup final and must be favourite to partner Alun Wyn Jones.Gatland will have been delighted Alun Wyn came through his 80 minutes. He is set to win his 100th Wales cap next week and he has worked tirelessly for every single one. He's become a true talisman for Wales and they need him somewhere back to his best to have any hope against New Zealand. He really is that important.
I would be tempted to wrap him up in cotton wool and then unleash him next week. Though trying to hold back Alun Wyn is easier said than done.
I suspect Gatland will revert back to his default option in midfield and partner Jonathan Davies with Jamie Roberts. It's tough on Scott Williams but he is still getting back to full sharpness while Davies is coming off the back of topping the Top 14 with Clermont Auvergne.