Johnson refuses to be carried away by England

TERMINOLOGY such as "nuts and bolts" is more Martin Johnson's vocabulary, not waxing lyrical about what others deem one of the greatest tries ever scored.

Given the sheer majesty of Chris Ashton's glorious effort in the record-breaking win against Australia, you wanted to slap the England manager in the face, tell him to lighten up and just say how fantastic it all was.

However, although slightly more jocular than usual, he refused to budge and simply reiterated why his side were able to create such a score and, likewise, such an impressive victory.

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He was not going to make the mistake of getting caught up in the hysteria – understandably, some are now instantly believing England can win the World Cup next year – and that was a wise decision as important as the result itself.

It is crucial his international set-up remain grounded yet inevitably, after a turbulent two years in charge where even the most understanding of English fan thought Johnson might have been a dud choice, people are asking how did such a free-flowing and stylish victory materialise from the regular prosaic stodge we had seen so often before?

It has not been a sudden overnight magical transformation. Small steps have gradually been made over that time and Johnson has always envisaged a way he wanted his side to perform.

The difference has not been in anything he has drastically altered, more the result of patience and belief in the men in which he has entrusted to do the job.

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Certainly, a core of young talent has emerged over the last six months which could prove the backbone of a Red Rose team for the next decade let alone the 2011 World Cup.

In the rapid and instinctive scrum-half Ben Youngs, natural finishing quality of Ashton, Courtney Lawes's athletic mobility and the imposing tighthead Dan Cole, he has players not damaged by previous setbacks and undaunted by anything lying before them.

Likewise, Ben Foden is a dashing runner at full-back and Tom Croft – still only 25 – has emerged as a flanker of some repute.

The majority of these did not feature prominently, if at all, in the Six Nations earlier this year and it is their arrival which has invigorated the whole dynamic of a side clearly growing in confidence.

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There were fleeting signs in the last Six Nations game against France that this group had promise, enhanced during the June triumph in Sydney and hinted at again versus the All Blacks – albeit in defeat – 11 days ago.

Johnson has completed the onerous task of axing his stale captain Steve Borthwick which has given Lawes the chance to shine at second-row and ditched others, such as Mathew Tait, Ugo Monye and Louis Deacon, who failed to perform too often and replaced them with fresh vigour.

On Saturday, England's desire to move the ball wide was obvious from the off but the key was they were able to generally do it with precision and pace. In the past, their execution has let them down and, understandably, when seeing ball go to ground, they have resorted to a more conservative approach.

But when passes stick and possession is recycled so swiftly, as their forwards regularly ensured against the Wallabies, confidence naturally grows and the England players' belief in their own ability surged.

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Johnson has always insisted his side had the potential to play such a game; now, vitally, they themselves have the knowledge they can.

Where before they have seen their dare result in errors, at the weekend, due to a little extra sharpness or those "nuts and bolts" being tightened, they witnessed first hand how devastating they can be.

It was widely suggested as being the finest England performance at Twickenham since Clive Woodward's lot destroyed South Africa 53-3 in 2002. Twelve months later, Johnson lifted the World Cup in Sydney. With the same amount to time to elapse before the next tournament, the hope now is that the captain-turned-manager can build towards repeating the feat.

Leeds Carnegie hooker Steve Thompson, one of only three survivors in Saturday's squad from that famous 2003 night, believes a similar vibe is being created.

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"I must admit, I do sense that," he said. "When you're part of something, especially when you get a bit older, you can see there's something there. We know now we can beat any team in the world. It's just having that belief and I think that's coming through now.

"We've got some great young lads emerging, some old heads like myself who can help out a little bit, and a great blend.

"We can actually feel something special building. Definitely."

Lewis Moody and Mike Tindall are the other colleagues from that historic evening seven years ago, Jonny Wilkinson another who has been sidelined by injury.

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It is debateable whether the fly-half will be able to force his way back into the side given the maturity of Toby Flood's performance at Twickenham.

The Leicester fly-half boasted a 100 per cent record with the boot and was the perfect link with the inventive Youngs to produce some slick football.

"There was a lot of style," admitted Thompson. "People had said we're a one-trick team but we played some good rugby against New Zealand and this time some great rugby proving we can score from all over."

Now they must re-produce it against Samoa on Saturday before importantly tackling current world champions South Africa.

Only then will there be a clearer picture of whether England can rule the world once more.