England boss Stuart Lancaster: I’m sorry for letting everyone down

Cheika, meanwhile, said he was preparing for a meeting with “Master” Gatland.

Waratahs fly-half Bernard Foley had an evening to remember as he scored 28 points – with two tries – to give Australia their biggest ever win at the home of English rugby.

England coach Stuart Lancaster and captain Chris Robshaw issued abject apologies after Australia dumped the host nation out of the World Cup on Saturday.

Wales and Australia have locked in quarter-final berths after they both toppled World Cup hosts England in the pool stages. “Clearly, I have invested a lot of time in one-to-one relationships with the players and I’d like to think I’ve got an open door where people can come in and tell me any problems and issues that arise”. It has been not just the group of death but the group of hell, basically, for all of us.

The 33-13 defeat to Australia at Twickenham means England can not now reach the quarter-finals whatever happens against Uruguay next week.

“I think it’s just building on that [win]”, Ashley-Cooper said when asked where the Wallabies needed to improve ahead of the clash with Wales.

You could say something along the lines of “sore losers”, here, but kicking them while they’re already down, etc. Tom Wood, who did address media, provided a bleak summary of how England felt following their defeat.

RFU chief executive Ian Ritchie reveals that there will be no quick decisions made following England’s exit from the Rugby World Cup at the group stage. “I’ve just sat in front of the coaching team and said we’ve got a game to play this Saturday”, Lancaster said. You have got to put things into perspective.

Australia won’t be basking in the glory of their record Twickenham triumph over England beyond Sunday’s recovery, with Adam Ashley-Cooper declaring the Wallabies have set their sights on becoming a “great team”. “It’s families and livelihoods and all that sort of stuff”.

Gatland paid tribute to Lancaster’s work. For what he has done when he took over the job, in terms of the discipline he has instilled in that side and how his players conduct themselves, I have a huge amount of respect for what he has done. Australia are a team that can be brilliant one week and frightful the next three, then be brilliant again for another couple.

“Developing professional teams capable of securing worldwide success has always been, and continues to be, a key imperative in the RFU’s Strategic Plan”.

England’s humiliation was completed when 10 minutes from the end Owen Farrell was sent to the sin bin for a reckless tackle. When England came back and started to move the ball, they put Australia under a few pressure.

Criticised by former players for England’s displays on the field, Lancaster has won plaudits for reconnecting the national side with its fan base after a poor tournament in New Zealand in 2011.

“We’ve a game to play on Saturday and it’s not the time now to make a decision like that”. “We need to be clear this is not a time for a knee-jerk reaction”.