TOM Rees can teach the teacher when he lines up against Cardiff Blues star Martyn Williams on Saturday evening.

The Welsh back rower gave Rees a torrid time in the Anglo Welsh Cup back in 2006, and Rees recalls the 36-20 defeat at the Arms Park as his severest lesson in rugby.

He said: “My steepest learning curve as a young player was playing against Martyn Williams a few years ago down in Cardiff.

“I worked my socks off running around doing everything I could, but every time I picked myself up from a ruck he seemed to be going in the opposite direction with ball.

“As a young guy I thought just trying harder would get you through.

“But that was a realisation that you needed to be a little bit smarter and a little bit less of a blunt instrument. I learned a lot from that.”

Meanwhile, Rees rubbishes claims that no one cares about this competition.

Wasps took their first steps down a seven-year glory trail by winning the competition in 2003, and Northampton are thriving on the confidence gained from taking the trophy last year.

Rees said: “It’s not beneath us. It’s not a nothing competition that people aren’t bothered about. Yes, we want to be Heineken Cup winners. Yes, we want to be Premiership winners. But if we’re in any competition we’re in it to win it.”