England to name RWC squad on Thursday

England, who won the World Cup under Woodward in 2003, play Ireland in their final warm-up game at Twickenham on September 5.

The England pack could not get a foothold in the game, a succession of errors ensuring their team did not enjoy any possession in the France half.

Former Wales captain Ryan Jones does not expect England’s 25-20 defeat by France to have any bearing on their World Cup form.

Luther Burrell is able to deal with the newest hurdle in his profession when he performs his last audition for a spot in England’s World Cup squad.

“It was one of the direst performances of the Stuart Lancaster era, as England were overpowered up front, eclipsed at the breakdown and played with an insouciance behind that suggested they were saving themselves for what lay ahead”, Paul Rees of the Observer wrote.

The first person Cipriani called after the game on Saturday was Steve Black, the fitness coach and mentor who guided Jonny Wilkinson through his career. We didn’t react to the ref and it left us with a lot to do in the second half.

Late tries from Danny Cipriani and Jonathan Joseph flattered England and alarm bells are ringing with one warm-up remaining before Fiji visit Twickenham in the tournament opener on September 18.

Dropped passes, failed lineouts and penalties conceded in their own half amounted to a big points difference in no time at all, as first Scott Spedding stepped up to give his side the lead with three minutes on the clock, before Freddie Michalak then became France’s highest points scorer in history as he slotted three penalties, giving his side a 12-0 lead with 25 minutes played.

The World Cup hosts had barely entered the French half by the time the home side came close to their first try, with only Mike Brown’s flawless catch beneath his own posts preventing Huget from collecting Sebastien Tillous-Borde’s chip.

They are a familiar foe for England, both in recent weeks and World Cups gone by, and France have named their 31-man squad for the 2015 edition.

“We can’t give teams like France and other quality sides head starts like we did”.

Cipriani said: “I have had to take any opportunity I have had on the field”. Dave Attwood, 20. Nick Easter, 21.

“If we in the media and England fans are talking about the issues and permutations, you can be sure the players are doing likewise”.

The good work was undone in a flash, however, as Michalak darted forward and cleverly sent Huget through a large gap, with Robshaw arriving too late to make the covering tackle.

“I don’t think that performance means we are out of the chance of winning the World Cup, not by any stretch of the imagination”, said Ford.

Cipriani’s arrival from the bench for the final quarter injected life into England’s attacking game and with George Ford one of many who struggled, there is now doubt at fly-half.