Steve Borthwick insists he does not care whether England are installed as underdogs for their Rugby World Cup semi-final.
England rode out a late Fiji rally to prevail 30-24 in Marseille, and book a sixth World Cup semi-final.
The Red Rose men have now won five matches in a row for the first time since 2021 and will face South Africa in Paris on Saturday night.
Fiji outscored England three tries to two, including two scores in four minutes that turned the second-half on its head, but Owen Farrell’s five penalties, one drop-goal and one conversion proved the difference.
Asked whether England will be content to be underdogs in their imminent last-four battle, Borthwick said: “I don’t really care what other people think of us, I care about the development of the team.
“What I sense here is a group of supporters that are behind this team, and they’ve been behind this team since the start of the tournament. I think the crowd were brilliant tonight.”
England lost three of their four warm-up matches, notably 30-22 to Fiji at Twickenham on August 26 - their first-ever defeat by the Pacific Islanders.
Borthwick always insisted England would be ready for the World Cup, despite their miserable form of winning just three in nine matches under the new boss before heading to France. And now the Red Rose head coach clearly feels vindicated by his faith in England’s development.
“I said the team would be ready for September 9 (England’s first match); the team was ready for September 9,” said Borthwick.
“And the team’s built through the tournament, I said this is a team and squad packed full of talented players who perform on the big occasion and they have performed on the big occasion.
“I get to work with a fantastic group of players that really improves this team.”
Farrell’s 20-point contribution cemented England’s progress to the last four, despite Fiji drawing level from a 24-10 deficit.
Ben Earl’s 50-metre break teed up Farrell’s final penalty to kill the contest, leaving the Red Rose captain to praise his Saracens teammate.
“Ben Earl’s obviously growing and growing as a player, but it’s no surprise to me,” said Farrell.
“I’ve been his teammate now for a long time now, and seeing how hungry he is, and how much he wants the ball and wants to get involved when the game matters. And I’ve seen that obviously for the club for a while now, and we’re seeing it here.
“And on days like today, it probably doesn’t feel as right to pick out individuals as much, because as I said it’s not just a team performance but a whole squad one. But he certainly played a big part in it.
“We’re very pleased to find a way to win the game again today. I think the team’s done an excellent job of that over the group stages, and now we’re in a big knockout game, so very pleased.
“The effort that the full squad that’s gone into this week has made it an enjoyable week and a week where we’ve all gone after it together. That will continue now into next week.”
