Corbisiero was born in the USA but has played for England Under-20s

London Irish prop Alex Corbisiero has said he enjoyed his Premiership debut at Twickenham against Wasps.

The New York-born prop starred in the front row for the Exiles as they beat reigning champions Wasps 26-14.

Corbisiero told BBC Radio Berkshire he was pleased to repay the faith shown in him by head coach Toby Booth.

He said: "Coming into this season my target was to try to break through into the first team but I didn't ever think it would happen in the first game."

The 20-year-old added: "Toby said to me 'just keep doing what you're doing, you've earned your spot now just keep going forward'.

"It's a big eye-opener when you come out of that tunnel and you look around and all you can see is people.

"It was a new experience and I was a bit nervous to begin with, but once the whistle went, you don't focus on that except for the odd moment when you hear the cheers.

"I just wanted to show that I could play at that level. When I came off at the end I had a chance to take it in, when I could see the clock and knew that we were safe."

Corbisiero was given a chance to settle his nerves early in the first half when he put in a crunching tackle on Josh Lewsey.

"Catty put up a high ball and I chased the kick and I was fortunate to get a one-on-one shot with Josh Lewsey and put in a good hit.

"It was a big confidence booster for me, with him being a hero of mine when I was younger.

"He didn't say anything to me but Phil Vickery said 'really well played' to me after the game which meant a lot coming from him, because he was an idol to me growing up when you see what he's done and the respect he has in the game."

Corbisiero is likely to feature for Irish against Leicester on Saturday

Despite being born in the USA, Corbisiero sees his future with England and played for the Under-20s last season.

And he added when playing against Italy he managed to obtain a souvenir for his family.

"I traded shirts with the number three after the game and I sent it to my grandfather back in New York.

"He wears it and cherishes it - I think it meant a lot to him. I know it's a big part of my heritage, my Italian roots.

"I was lucky enough in that game to have played well, scored a try and picked up the man-of-the-match award, so it topped it off being able to send the shirt back to him."