Australian rugby supporters who breathed a sigh of relief when Jonny Wilkinson signalled the end of his England days may be in for a nasty shock. The scourge of the Wallabies in the 2003 World Cup final has indicated he would love to tour with the British and Irish Lions next summer and says he has a score to settle following the Lions' series defeat in 2001.

At the age of 33 Wilkinson has been rejuvenated on and off the field since moving to Toulon and feels he still has one last international hurrah in him. As he talked in the sun-drenched French Riviera town of Menton, having paid a ceremonial visit to the grave of the sport's mythical founding father William Webb Ellis, it was clear picking up a Test ball and running with it again held huge appeal.

"There's no way I could say no," admitted England's record points-scorer. "It's such a fabulous thing in terms of what it represents. It doesn't matter where you've come from, it's enormous."

Having been a central figure in the 2001 series, when his intercepted pass contributed to a Wallaby win in Melbourne, and tasted defeat again in New Zealand in 2005, the World Cup winner also has plenty of personal motivation. "It is niggling away at me. In 2001 I sat in the changing-room after the third Test and it felt like a World Cup final loss. It's like trying to run a marathon, getting to the 25th mile and someone saying: 'That's it.'"

As yet Warren Gatland, the Lions coach, has not approached him directly but there is a precedent, with the Leicester flanker Neil Back touring in 2005 after ending his England career. The snag for Wilkinson is that the closing stages of the French championship season in early June coincide with the start of the Lions' trek to Hong Kong and Australia. Wilkinson is also well aware others are ahead of him in the queue.

"I'm a 33-year-old player playing in France and enjoying my rugby. I'm not England's mainstay fly-half so there's an element of realism for me," he said. "Selection is out of my control. All I can do is play and see if I fit into their plans."

Whatever happens, Wilkinson is a happier, less tortured soul nowadays. By his own admission he was worried how he would react to retiring from England duty but has been pleasantly surprised. "I thought it might kick off another of these terrible cycles of mine when I'd suddenly think: 'What am I going to do' and regret it. Actually, it was the opposite. It gave me a new perspective after what I'd been through a year and a half before; sitting in my hotel room every night, going to bed anxious and not being able to work out what was eating me inside."

After three rewarding years in Toulon – "I absolutely adore this place, it's changed my life" – he has, nevertheless, yet to commit to another season in France. He likes the idea of coaching young kickers and has a horror of playing beyond his sell-by date. "It scares me that someone might turn around and say, 'We'll take him on because he did a few things in the past.' It scares me that might count for more than what I am doing on the field."

Age also has its drawbacks – "Physically I can't train like I did when I was 21" – but the old desire still burns. "Maybe it's because I'm coming towards the end, but I'm finding an extra intensity."

He was so inspired by watching the Olympics he even dug out his running spikes – "I saw myself as Usain Bolt ..." – and has also enjoyed studying England's progress from afar, not least the current tussle for the No10 jersey.

The 21-year-old Owen Farrell reminds him of his younger self. "I see that constant battle going on in his head. There's an inner aggression that comes from battling with yourself because you are setting your own expectations.

"He has his own agenda which sets the bar ahead of what his team wants. That kind of ruthless edge is something you can't ignore. You need to harness that."

If Farrell wants to follow in his predecessor's footsteps, he has little time to waste. The qualifying process for the 2015 tournament kicks off this weekend when Hungary face Bulgaria in Kecskemet in Kecskemét and Wilkinson believes England must also gather some momentum this autumn.

"We should really be looking at winning all four of the games. This autumn is going to be massive in terms of starting the ball rolling." The trophy bearing Webb Ellis's name is already exerting its relentless pull.

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