For England the aim is simple, back up the memorable win against Ireland with another victory and performance to prove that it wasn’t just an unexpected flash in the pan and that under Steve Borthwick they have a template and plan that can regularly beat the world’s best.

One way to do that is make sure any complacency is kicked firmly into touch and that is something not lost on the captain, Jamie George.

“We got some things really right emotionally last week in the build-up and probably a lot of that came from sticking two fingers up to some people who were saying some bad things about us after the Scotland game,” George said.

“Steve [Borthwick] is very conscious of [the complacency]. I learned a big lesson in 2019 after the New Zealand performance around things like emotional highs and lows. Saturday [against Ireland] was probably as emotional a performance as we’ve had since 2019. What I’ve learned is that if you try and convince yourself that you’re fine, you’re going to feel fine, physically you’re going to be fine – then realistically you’re not.”

England come up against a France 23 unchanged for the first time since 2019, after Fabien Galthié resisted the temptation to tinker with the squad that beat Wales last week meaning England know what they’re up against: power.

In Cardiff the France coach picked the big (as in really huge) men and it is the same today for the always much-anticipated battle against the English. Emmanuel Meafou, the 145kg Toulouse second row, is set to win his second cap, scrummaging behind the similarly bulky Uini Atonio. They are likely to be replaced by Georges-Henri Colombe and Romain Taofifénua, who come in at a equally heavy 140kg, will replace them at tighthead prop and lock respectively.

Outside them they have panache to compliment the power. Nolann Le Garrec, Nicolas Depoortère, Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Léo Barré all retain their spots in the XV but after missing the victory over Wales with a chest infection, Posolo Tuilagi misses out on a chance to take on his uncle, Manu.  

Galthe is only too aware that their power will be met by a similarly beefy England.

“We are going to encounter an explosive English team. Powerful and solid… with this switching between playing the ball in hand and kicking, this pressure that they put on the opposition,” the France coach said. “We need to be more precise [than we were against Wales] in certain areas, notably defence. We’ll have to be compact and solid in the physical exchanges. England hit hard in the middle of the pitch and we’ll have to be switched on to that, certainly more than we were against Wales.”