English gent ready for Aviva cauldron

The culture of English rugby over the last 12 months has been simple: out with the old, in with the new.

Out have gone dwarf-tossing, a drinking culture and a determination not to pass the ball.

In have come youth, discipline, a sense of pride and an expansive game that is bringing results.

There have been moments of weakness, but Saturday’s impressive victory over Scotland suggested that December’s astonishing triumph against New Zealand was not a one-off. Now, though, comes a much harder test — the bear-pit atmosphere of the Aviva Stadium and an Ireland team that will not lack motivation.

Yet England now have leaders they can look to for inspiration, from Stuart Lancaster on the bench to their fine captain, Chris Robshaw.

Quiet, understated and polite off the pitch, the Harlequins skipper is a man the English public feel they can trust.

Robshaw is far more likely to be found at a classical music concert [his girlfriend, Camilla Kerslake, sang the national anthems before England’s game with Fiji] than falling out of a London nightclub in the arms of a Page Three model.

He is a classy guy, one neutrals want to do well. Now his challenge is to ensure that standards don’t slip, and that the New Zealand game was the start, not a culmination of this side’s achievements.

And to do so he and his back row comrades — likely to be Tom Wood and James Haskell if Ben Morgan is ruled out by injury — will have to get the better of the men in green.

Two years ago England went to Dublin looking for a Grand Slam but had no answer to Ireland’s aggression and desire.

Sean O’Brien, Jamie Heaslip and Peter O’Mahony will be confident of a repeat, but this is an England side that do their homework and will know exactly what they are coming up against.

“They are awesome,” admits Robshaw when asked about Ireland’s back row. “We had a real battle with the Irish boys before. We played them once with Leinster a couple of years ago. They are incredible — they have been there for years now and have that experience. Look at O’Brien with his physicality and his work on the floor, and Heaslip’s carrying.

“Ireland will be pretty tough. There will be a backlash from when they came to Twickenham last year [when England won 30-9]. That will be tough. Whenever you play Ireland, especially in Ireland, it is always emotional, passionate and intense. I’m sure it will be exactly the same and be a challenge.”

Yet it is difficult to get too far into a conversation with any member of the England side without hearing the word ‘culture’.

It is Lancaster’s buzzword, the phrase which sums up the change in emphasis among this England side from one of entitlement to hard work. There have been wholesale changes and Robshaw — a man who has just 13 international caps, remember — is at the forefront.

“Stuart has been brilliant,” smiles Robshaw. “I think you learn from experiences and from other guys you’re going to play against and from stuff you got right or maybe didn’t get right.

“How am I finding it as captain? Exciting. There have been some great times and some hard times. It’s like anything — you get more experience and learn tricks of the trade.

“It’s about having that core group who can drive the squad if there is a hard decision to be made.

“You have to back each other. It might not be a popular decision but these are things captains and leaders have to do.”

We will discover how strong that leadership is on Sunday.

*Chris Robshaw was speaking at the Guinness Made of More RBS 6 Nations launch. The Guinness Rugby conversations will continue on Thursday at 6.30pm on Today FM.