Lewsey a man with a mission to take down Irish favourites

England's left wing Josh Lewsey refuses to wallow in the disappointment of defeat against France at Twickenham and is suitably and understandably spiky about the world champions' forthcoming clash with Ireland at Lansdowne Road on Sunday week.

Lewsey, who scored a superb individual try against the French, won't be cowed by a trip to Dublin and a clash with many people's pre-tournament tip, Ireland. England may have lost their opening two games and be facing a team in Ireland that ended their 21-game unbeaten run at Twickenham last season but the Wasps player ventured: "Ireland are obviously the favourites for this tournament, and rightly so.

"We've got to go there with two defeats and try to rectify that. We know we have got the players to do it, but we are up against it. We've got a week away now, and I think that will be healthy to have a bit of a break from each other, and then we come back fresh.

"There is no point in going over to Dublin and battening down the hatches. I don't think that suits our game, I don't think the players want to play like that, and I don't think the coaches want to play like that.

"Hopefully, it will be a dry day, although I don't think I have ever been to Lansdowne Road and there hasn't been a gale blowing from one end to the other!"

England are faced with a very unappetising prospect should they lose in Dublin just 14 months after being crowed world champions.

They would find themselves at the bottom of the Six Nations table alongside the losers in the Scotland-Italy clash: if the latter two sides drew then England, were they also to suffer a defeat in Dublin, would prop up the table.

Lewsey, though, was quick to rail against any assertion that England's preparations to date haven't been what they might, asserting that they should have beaten France.

"You can't fault the preparation, you can't fault the enthusiasm of the squad and the coaches, it was just one of those days. It is a very strong, united squad.

"If we are absolutely honest, I think we were the better team. But having said that, we were guilty of giving away too many penalties in the second-half.

"We got ourselves in a position to win the game, and we should have won it, but some execution let us down. We will take it, as a squad, on the chin."

Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan will be only too aware of the dangers of a wounded England when they travel to Dublin. Irish history is littered with enough examples of the underdog taking a king-sized bite out of the ambitions of the more fancied team.

For once it will be Ireland and not England who will be fearing that kind of ambush.