JAMIE Noon will be assuming the role of chaperone at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium tomorrow, but the Newcastle Falcons centre will not allow the frenzy surrounding team-mate Mathew Tait to overshadow his own big day.

Noon will win his sixth England cap when Andy Robinson's side kick off their Six Nations campaign in Wales, but the 25-year-old's return from the international wilderness has been largely forgotten amidst the intense interest that has surrounded the selection of Tait.

The pair have spent the last week together at England's Bagshot base, with Noon playing a pivotal role in helping his teenage team-mate to feel at home in his new surroundings.

That process of acclimatisation will continue tomorrow but, while Noon will do all he can to ease Tait's introduction to the international fold, he cannot afford to let his concerns for his colleague affect his own preparations.

With Mike Tindall, Stuart Abbott and Will Greenwood ruled out of the bulk of the Six Nations, the following five games offer a golden chance for both players to establish themselves in England's new-look midfield.

And after narrowly missing England's World Cup triumph in 2003 - Noon lost out to Mike Catt in Sir Clive Woodward's final cut - the schemer is determined to make the most of his latest opportunity.

"I will try to help Mathew as much as I can," said Noon, who originally joined Newcastle as a flanker before he was moulded into a centre by Falcons Academy coach Paul McKinnon. "But I've got to make sure that I concentrate on myself.

"It's comforting to have the two of us playing together, although the speed of Mathew's development means we haven't even played that many games together for Newcastle.

"I always thought I would play with some of the Newcastle lads for England, but I need to concentrate on myself and not get caught up in making sure Mathew's going to be fine.

"I can't spend all of my time worrying about other people because this is a massive game for me and a chance to impress.

"It's my first Six Nations game and, even though I've played for England in the past, it feels a bit like a debut for me."

Noon's actual debut came in 2001 when, with a number of established internationals on duty with the British Lions, he won three caps on England's tour of North America.

He had to wait another two years for his next chance in an England jersey though, with Woodward casting an eye over his World Cup credentials in a 43-9 win over Wales in August 2003.

While that game took place in the Millennium Stadium, both nations fielded experimental line-ups as their respective coaches finalised their World Cup plans.

Tomorrow promises to be somewhat different as an ebullient Welsh side take on an England outfit still in the early stages of a rebuilding process brought on by a spate of retirements and injuries.

"The game in Wales stands out as one of my best memories of my time with England," said Noon, who was the star player of the back division during 2004's Churchill Cup summer tour of Canada. "But, because it's the Six Nations, this will be something very different.

"It's the England side playing now whereas, before, it was the hopefuls for the World Cup. A lot of new players came together very quickly when I last played there so we had to gel pretty quickly.

"I suppose we're in the same boat now because the team has changed a lot in the last couple of years. You can't lose the number of players with the calibre and experience we have and not be affected.

"It's important for England to bring new players through. We can't just rest on our laurels after the last World Cup - we have to work to the next one and, hopefully, the younger guys have been picked to be World Cup winners of the future."

Noon and Tait will be assured of a rough ride, but the duo have already been given a warm welcome in the valleys once this season and emerged victorious.

The pair first played together in the centre when Newcastle beat Newport Gwent Dragons 10-6 in October - a game that ultimately paved for the way for the Falcons' progression to the last eight of the Heineken Cup. Subsequent wins over Perpignan and Edinburgh helped to raise Newcastle's profile, and also proved crucial in pushing both Noon and Tait into the international limelight.

"I don't know if either of us would have been here had it not been for the Heineken Cup," admitted Noon. "Both myself and Mathew have been playing against the best players in Europe and I think Andy Robinson will have taken note of that with interest.

"You get more attention when you're playing in Europe. If you make a mistake it's highlighted over and over again but, if you do well, then things like this start to happen.