Robinson: World can be ours again

ENGLAND head into tomorrow’s crunch clash with Ireland with echoes of 2003 all around them.

Martin Johnson leads the side from the stand rather than on the field as he did eight years ago, while a win, following home fixtures against France, Italy and Scotland and a visit to Wales, will secure the Grand Slam, just as it did back then.

It is also a World Cup year, with Johnson and all connected with the England side hoping that a win in Dublin will be the precursor to success on the global stage, just as it was under Clive Woodward’s stewardship almost a decade ago.