England captain Chris Robshaw says the squad are certainly not panicking following their recent Twickenham defeats at the hands of New Zealand and South Africa.
After losing 24-21 to world champions New Zealand on November 8, Stuart Lancaster’s side suffered another three-point loss against the Springboks last weekend.
But Robshaw says he and his fellow squad members are still feeling confident and believe they remain on the right path ahead of next year’s World Cup on home soil.
Robshaw told Sky Sports News HQ : “We haven’t quite got the results we wanted in the first two games playing against the two best teams in the world but we believe what we’re about.
“The positivity in the camp is fantastic at the moment and we’ve had our debrief on the relevant games.”
And Robshaw does not believe that these two defeats have left any negative baggage inside the heads of the players as they prepare to take on Samoa this weekend.
He added: “There is no doubt at all in the minds of any of the players. We still believe in what we’re doing and what we’re about and we looked back at the South Africa game and know we’re still creating chances. And that’s a big thing.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t quite taken them and that’s the next stage, to be able to finish them. But we still believe in the way we’re playing.”
As for the South Africa defeat last Saturday, England started poorly, made some silly mistakes and were 10-0 down early on before fighting back only to lose out by another narrow margin (31-28).
Pressure
And the skipper had an interesting take on the matter. He said: “Maybe we were over trying, nobody wants to knock-on, maybe it was pressure, and credit to their defence by putting pressure on us, slowing the ball down.
“We looked back at the first half and realise we made mistakes and South Africa exploited it and suddenly we were playing catch up.
“But we didn’t panic, we stayed on page, fought back and on another day it may have gone our way.
“But you move on. You don’t sit and moan about it. You learn from it, do extra skills during the week and hopefully by the weekend it will be fine.”
Regarding this week’s early evening game against Samoa, Robshaw says England’s balance should not be disrupted should coach Lancaster decide to make any changes.
He said: “If there are injuries, the squad can mix and match, and fit in straight away, and that’s the beauty of having all the players in camp for the past two or three weeks.”
Watch England's clash with Samoa live on Saturday from 6:30pm on Sky Sports 2 HD. Lancaster will name the team at 4.15pm on Wednesday afternoon - details on Sky Sports News HQ.