inaugural match of the 1994 World Rugby Classic tournament at 7 p.m. they are hoping to avoid the pitfalls that lurked in the shadows of their opener a year ago.

England -- Classic finalists on three occasions -- got off on the wrong foot, losing to eventual champions Barbarians 29-18, effectively slamming the door on any hopes they had of making it to the final.

But a few days later the England side roared back to tie Australia 10-10 and then thump the United States 35-10 in the Plate Final.

A key factor in the team's sudden turnaround was Mike Harrison, a former England captain, who returns for his second Classic appearance. He scored a try in each of the last two games, and expects England to start on a much stronger note this time, first meeting hosts Bermuda and then arch-rivals Barbarians on Friday.

South Africa make their Classic debut tonight against the US at 8.15 p.m.

"The first game let us down last year,'' Harrison said. "Hopefully we will have learned from that. The first game in any tournament is hard. I think you'll find that the Barbarians found it hard on Sunday.'' England have made only minor adjustments to their line-up, although the addition of lock Wade Dooley should strengthen the squad considerably.

"There's one or two additions,'' Harrison said yesterday, the aftermath of a night of merriment resounding in his voice. "I don't think we thought we did ourselves justice last year. I think we came straight off the plane to play and we didn't really have time to get ourselves together. But this year we're fortunate that we didn't have to play until Wednesday.'' Harrison, 39, earned 15 caps from 1985 to 1988, scoring a try in his first two games against the All Blacks. He proved so adept at snaring interceptions, a New Zealand television commentator dubbed him "Burglar Bill'' which continues to stick to this day.

The five-foot-10, 170-pound wing became captain in 1986 in a Test match against Scotland, and he played in the World Cup in 1987.

He has served as unofficial captain since the team arrived in Bermuda, but Mike Rafter, who showed up late, will fill those shoes tonight.

Harrison closely watched Bermuda and the Barbarians on Sunday and felt the local side erred in making so many changes to begin the second half, breaking up the momentum they had built with a 7-0 half-time advantage.

"That was a big problem, the wholesale changes they made,'' said Harrison.

"We bring people on in ones and twos, so it doesn't disrupt everything throughout the game. When you've got a pattern going, a bit of a rhythm, to change six or seven players at a time, it doesn't do you any good.'' Mike Harrison