England coach Stuart Lancaster said there was more to come from his youthful side after they moved closer to a Six Nations grand slam with a 23-13 victory over World Cup finalists France at Twickenham.
“Our players know they have been through a very tough 80 minutes. France brought their ‘A’ game and put us under a lot of pressure,” said Lancaster.
“It shows a great level of maturity for a young side, average age of 24, 200-odd caps, that’s it, and playing a side that’s been to a World Cup final and have lots of world-class players and 500 caps in their side.”
While the ultimate goal for Lancaster is to guide the team to Webb Ellis trophy glory when England stage the 2015 World Cup, the short-term outlook remains hugely encouraging.
In beating a vastly improved France, England continued to make good on the promise they showed in a record-breaking 38-21 win over the All Blacks at Twickenham in December.
They started the Six Nations with contrasting wins over Scotland (38-18) and away to Ireland (12-6) but France proved their sternest opponents so far.
In a match of brutal breakdown battles and fearsome collisions, France led 10-9 at halftime after a superb solo try from Wesley Fofana was converted by halfback Morgan Parra, who also kicked a penalty.
But England, with five-eighth Owen Farrell landing four penalties and replacement Toby Flood kicking two more late on, established a decisive seven-point lead early in the second half through Manu Tuilagi.
The centre scored England’s only try when he ran in from 40 metres, although there was an element of luck when South African referee Craig Joubert ignored an apparent ruck offence in the build-up.
Since Lancaster took charge last year, a constant figure in England’s progress has been the man he installed as captain – Chris Robshaw.
The openside flanker, criticised for poor decision-making in November defeats by Australia and South Africa, produced another towering display to be named man of the match.
“Chris was outstanding in his leadership and his ability to make correct decisions under pressure, as a player as well as a captain,” said Lancaster.
England haven’t completed a grand slam since their World Cup-winning year of 2003 but only Italy and defending champions Wales stand in their way.
However, 26-year-old Robshaw insisted: “The grand slam doesn’t cross people’s minds. Our feet are firmly on the ground.”
In Rome, Wales kept their Six Nations hopes alive on Saturday with a 26-9 victory over Italy in a rain-sodden encounter at the Stadio Olimpico.
Although Italy trailed by just three points at the break, converted second-half tries from Jonathan Davies and Alex Cuthbert, as well as the sin-binning of Italian captain Martin Castrogiovanni, set the Welsh on the road to a comfortable win.
“It was a good performance – especially up front,” Davies told the BBC. “The boys worked very hard and, as a backline, we had to make sure we took our chances. The pack was on fire.”
