Schmidt braced for almighty backlash from wounded England

Ireland will move above England to second in the latest World Rugby rankings issued today, adding fuel to Saturday’s trip to Twickenham with Joe Schmidt warning his Grand Slam-chasing side to expect an almighty backlash from Eddie Jones’s wounded animals.

Back-to-back defeats for the English have helped the Irish to a third Six Nations title in five seasons under Schmidt, with Ireland’s 28-8 victory over Scotland making it a third bonus-point win of the campaign and wrapping up the Championship for the men in green with a week still to go.

Yet there remains plenty of reasons for England to bite back in London on St Patrick’s Day with revenge for last year’s defeat in Dublin, when they were denied a second Grand Slam in as many seasons by Ireland sure to be uppermost in their thoughts, despite their denials at the weekend.