Rugby Football Union chief executive Ian Ritchie on Thursday branded England’s recent performances “not satisfactory”, but said they will improve in time for next year’s World Cup on home soil.

After finishing second in this year’s Six Nations, England suffered five consecutive losses — four to New Zealand and one to South Africa — before beating Samoa and Australia in the November internationals.

Head coach Stuart Lancaster has only eight games left to shape his team for the World Cup, and Ritchie says they will have to show a marked improvement if they are to mount a serious challenge for the game’s top prize.

“We’ve played four times against New Zealand and lost four. Verdict: that’s not satisfactory and we want to do better than that,” he told journalists during a briefing at Twickenham.

“Absolutely this isn’t a development phase. We need to be and have to be competitive and beat those teams. We need to be in a position of beating every team. That’s what we have to do.

“But there is no doubt in my mind that the margin is pretty small. There’s no chasm of difference. It’s very marginal and now it’s about making sure that margin is made up. That’s the view of the coaching team as well.

“Next year I undoubtedly think we’ll be stronger, not weaker; whether that’s because of the time the squad have to train together or the availability of players.”