Even those who put their faith in the Lord have their occasional moments of schadenfreude, and today could be Jason Robinson's turn. England's born-again full-back is too polite to confess it in public but this afternoon will be sweet. Finally, he is about to face an international player with an even shakier grasp of rugby union's laws than his own.
When he glances across at his fellow ex-league man Wendell Sailor on the right wing for Australia, Robinson will be entitled to shake his head at the irony of it all: two 13-a-side legends gracing union's soaring citadel in front of 75,000 spectators, most of whom have never seen a live game of league. The world of union, for its part, should thank its lucky stars.
Imagine, for a moment, that Robinson had remained at Wigan and never signed for Sale two years ago. Does anyone believe England, not to mention the Lions in the first Test in Brisbane last year, would have fared better without him?
Sailor, who converted to the Wallabies' cause only last October, has yet to make such a major impact but, in a land where league is king, the box-office value of him clambering aboard the good ship union cannot be overstated.
They are different sorts of athletes, the smaller Robinson relying on his instincts and mesmerising footwork whereas Sailor, born just a fortnight earlier in July 1974, is a rumbling breeze block on legs, as hard to stop on his day as Jonah Lomu.
The mistake, though, is to assume the transition has been a doddle for both men, financial incentives notwithstanding.
"It's like a top champion at draughts trying to pick up chess," insists Phil Larder, England's assistant coach, on the art of switching from league to union. "You quickly pick up the different moves but the overall strategy is different."
The likes of Henry Paul and Iestyn Harris may be reassured, or more depressed, to learn that even Robinson and Sailor still feel like naive pawns much of the time.
Let Robinson unburden himself first. "The games are much more different than I ever thought," he admitted this week. "It's not a standing joke when I say I still don't know all the rules of union. I could tell a lie and say I know everything but that would be wrong. I may have exceptionally high standards but I'm not trying to pull the wool over people's eyes.
"Obviously I know what I'm doing in many areas, otherwise I wouldn't have played at the highest level in both codes, but league is more simple. Just changing your mentality is a big thing in itself. You have to buy into the union way of playing whether you like it or not. My mind tends to say 'Run, run, run' but after a while you start thinking, 'It's probably not best to do that here.' In union you're in deep water if you get isolated."
Since moving to full-back a year ago, though, Robinson's early union frustrations have eased and those who know his game best are unimpressed with the idea of shifting him to outside centre.
"It intrigues Clive Woodward more than it intrigues me," says Larder bluntly. "I always like to use Jason as a free spirit. Then you just sit in the stand and say a little prayer that he's wearing your jersey and is not playing against you. I think he's the greatest footballer in the world and thank God he's playing for me. He's brilliant. But clutter his mind up and you blunt his natural individualistic ability to destroy teams. Because of that I'd never play him in the centre unless I was stuck."
For the same reasons Larder is dismissive of those who say opponents are start ing to work Robinson out. "I know rugby union's a very intelligent game but there are some intelligent people in league too. Jason was on the scene for 10 years and nobody could stop him. He's just got this natural talent, but I have been a little bit disappointed at the way he's been used at Sale. I just think that Sale have cluttered his mind up."
Sailor's current problems are of a different variety. He touched the ball only twice against Ireland in the dreadful conditions at Lansdowne Road last Saturday and, aware that facing England represents the biggest moment of his union life so far, has imposed a rare media gag on himself until after the game.
Maybe he is following Lomu's lead, or simply wants to ward off inquiries about the late-night incident in Leeds - where he had a short union stint four seasons ago - when "Del" attracted attention for reasons other than his try-scoring ability.
"Sometimes you question whether you've made the right move or not," he said last week, reflecting on the slow process of integration into his new code. "Prior to playing Ireland I'd played four games in the last four months and three of them were club games in front of four or five hundred people. Whether you have an ego or not, that makes you think, 'Have I made the right choice?'"
Experts on both sides of the world, though, are backing him to come through.
"He's still adjusting but I've got absolutely no doubt that come next year's World Cup, after another season of Super 12, Wendell's going to be up with the top two or three wingers in the world," says his team-mate Mat Rogers, another league emigre who would have played today but for a rib injury. "You've just got to give him a little more time."
Robinson, whose own record of 184 tries in 302 league games and eight tries for England in his 12 Tests says plenty about his unique talent, rates Sailor too.
"He's certainly the best winger I've played against. I'm not sure what he's like in some of the other technical areas but we'll find out this weekend."
A hint of a smile plays across his lips at the prospect. If Australia are to avoid losing their golden fleece for the third year in a row at Twickenham, Sailor and co will first have to subdue Jason and his red rose argonauts.
How they match up
Sailor Robinson
Age 28 28
Height 6ft 4in 5ft 8in
Weight 17st 13st 2lb
International league records
Debut 1994 1993 (for GB)
Caps 16 16
Tries 17 8
(Robinson also has 7 England caps, 5 tries)
International union records
Debut 2002 2001 (for England)
Caps 4 12
Tries 0 8
(Robinson also has 3 Lions caps, 2 tries)
Past meetings
1994 World Club Championship: Brisbane 14 Wigan 20 (one try apiece)
1994 Ashes series: GB 8 Australia 4 (neither scored)
1997 World Club Championship: Brisbane 30 Wigan 4 (Sailor one try); Wigan 0 Brisbane 34 (neither scored)
1997 Superleague internationals: GB 14 Australia 38 (one try apiece); GB 20 Australia 12 (Robinson one try); GB 20 Australia 37 (Robinson one try, Sailor two)
1999 Tri-series : Australia 42 GB 6 (Sailor one try)
