England sharper for All Blacks test

The England camp has been a hive of positivity this week after demonstrating against the all-conquering All Blacks last Saturday that they can match the best in the world when they reach full stride.

What they need to show today against similarly dangerous opponents is that they can do it for the entire game and prove that victory over the Wallabies in Sydney in June was no fluke.

"We will be better for playing the All Blacks," insisted Johnson, who is yet to taste victory over one of the southern hemisphere heavyweights in front of his own fans.

"One of the guys yesterday said, 'If we had done that in Premiership we would have scored but it wasn't good enough'.

"It is that recognition from the players that they need to produce 80 minutes of Test match intensity and execution. Everything is about intensity.

"The pace of it is faster, more powerful, there are heavier tackles and you get less time. You have to get into that mode.

"We are expecting a very hard Test match and a tough challenge. We were disappointed with things we did last week but it is good to have that as a reference point.

"We didn't start well enough last week, defensively we compounded errors and suddenly they are scoring. You can fix those things up.

"The guys were realistic last week that they hadn't played well enough for long enough in the game. They had played well in parts but that won't win you a game against teams of this quality.

"Australia are very dangerous. They are very good at spotting opportunities, mis-matches, holes on the inside. We have got to be sharper than we were last week."

In coming from 14 points down inside 20 minutes to within seven points against the All Blacks, before eventually losing by 10, England showed greater offensive dynamism than they have in the past, particularly in the back three of Ben Foden, Chris Ashton and Mark Cueto.

But it is in the scrum, so often pivotal when England defeat Australia, that the game could be decided.

Australia's scrum will have been improved by the return to fitness of hooker Stephen Moore, who joins props Benn Robinson and Ben Alexander in a first-choice front row.

England's only change from last weekend's defeat was also at hooker, where the fiery Northampton captain Dylan Hartley has replaced Leeds Carnegie's Steve Thompson.

"Scrummaging-wise they didn't have a great game last week but you find often when things haven't gone well for a team that they put a lot of work into it and come back well," said Johnson.

"If we think we will dominate the scrum we will lose that contest. We have to work for every little thing we get. That is Test match rugby, you have to fight for everything.

"You get an edge in international rugby, you don't often get the dominance we had in Perth or what Wales had a little bit last Saturday.

"It is not as simplistic as saying 'we'll stick it up our jumper and keep the ball away from them'. It is not like that any more.

"They will get the ball and we have to handle that. When we get the ball it is about what we do with it."

England captain Moody – who is expected at some stage today to give way for Leeds's South Africa-born flanker Hendre Fourie, allowing him to win his second cap from the bench – has called on his England team-mates to start the ball rolling on a winter to remember for English sport.

Cricket's Ashes are just under two weeks away and Moody, who has already led an England team to victory in Australia this year, believes another victory by the 15 men in the Red Rose today can set the tone.

"I met Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook the other week," said Moody. "I wished them the best of luck and I think he (Strauss) took some confidence from the win we had over there in the summer.

"I will be watching intently when they start and at Twickenham we will be trying to give them as much confidence as we can."

The Test marks Johnson's 14th in charge at headquarters, with only six victories achieved in that time. Turning Twickenham into a fortress could be vital if this is not to be another false dawn.

"We want teams to come here and not look forward to playing," said Johnson. "You only do that by performance. It doesn't happen any other way. You have to go and play with intensity and accuracy and make it bloody difficult for them."