No excuses as England face the music after record defeat

In the aftermath of such a savage hammering the English players would have been forgiven for slinking silently off to the post-match function in the newly renovated Shelbourne Hotel.

After all, Ireland's previous best win against the Red Rose - a 22-0 victory in 1947 - came courtesy of a previous golden generation, who went on to claim the Grand Slam a year later.

Brian Ashton arrived into the media room alone. We've seen this ruse before. The coach undergoes the inquisition as players make a quick getaway.

So it was a surprise when Mike Tindall led a queue of characters involved in the humiliation.

This is a dark period for English rugby. Just four years since their ageing team were undeniably the best on the planet, they are now a second-tier side. Their structures are a mess. Their cutting edge is non-existent.

Tindall is a chief bludgeon in this team. Along with the other six World Cup medallists in Saturday's line-up, it must be excruciating to see a 66-point turnaround from the 2003 fixture at Lansdowne Road.

"Rubbish! To be 23-3 down at half-time, chasing the game. We started well and we could have maybe gone on but we tried to play sevens and shot ourselves in the foot.

"They are too good a team. They will punish you. But we just didn't turn up in the first half."

Tindall is a quality inside centre but he lacks the pace to make an impact in the 13 channel. But that's not where this game was decided. It was, as Tindall conceded, in the physical stakes where England came up some distance short.

English full back Olly Morgan didn't last long. The effects of being cut in half by an O'Driscoll tackle saw to that. Soon after he wandered to the touchline looking like a lost child.

"I think Olly Morgan looked like he had been in a battle. They were putting high balls on him. He did what he needed to do but unfortunately, with the 25 tackles he had to make in the first half, he got a bit of a stinger. Hopefully he will be alright."

Remarkably, debutant David Strettle coped competently when Ronan O'Gara dropped some early balls in behind him. He even burned Shane Horgan on the outside once.

Tindall talked of his eagerness to get back to his club Gloucester this week to bury the memory of Saturday. That could be a serious problem. The Irish players will have some down time but remain in camp. Two weeks to prepare for Scotland.

Captain Phil Vickery was asked what he thought about Brian Ashton describing this as a "stuffing".

"It doesn't make me feel the proudest person in the world but I'm very proud of my team and I'm a proud Englishman. We know we've got a lot of work to do and today hurts."

An English reporter should have known better than asking, "In your career you have won the World Cup, (had) a lot of highs and a few lows as well but that is the heaviest defeat that you have experienced as an England player?" Actually, it was more a statement than a question.

"No, it's not," replied Vickery, who was part of the 1998 Tour from hell when they lost 76-0 to Australia.

"Okay in the Five or Six Nations?"

"Probably, you would know more about that than me. There is not a lot I can say. The Irish are a fantastically powerful side not only on the field but off it as well"

Although curt in some of his responses, Vickery remained forthcoming. He refused to be shame-faced in defeat.

"It's the same old story. The difference between success and failure at the highest level whether you are a rugby player, a businessman or . . . a writer is very little.

"We pretty much went and did everything we said we wouldn't do in the first 20 minutes - just to really piss everybody off - you try playing catch-up rugby against a side of that quality (and it) is suicide rugby really."

Vickery even poured cold water on the theory that the Irish scrum is a weakness.

"It's only you press guys who talk about scrums and all the rest of it, and to be fair it's usually a load of b*****. It doesn't really affect us.

"Certainly, scrumwise, John Hayes has always come in for criticism as perhaps I always have. I've seen that guy scrummage against some of the best players in the world and come out on top.

"Good luck to Ireland with the rest of the Six Nations. Certainly, I think if they can keep all their players fit going into the summer with that squad nucleus they have got a great chance to do well at the World Cup."