Defiant England promise all-out attack

England stole a traditional Ireland line yesterday when their coach, Andy Robinson, acknowledged for the first time in aeons that England were the second favourites in this two-horse race. "We are not going to Dublin to make up the numbers," barked the coach of the world champions, whose stock has now fallen so low that even he considers them the underdogs for this weekend's Six Nations game at Lansdowne Road.

Not since 1987 has an England team lost its opening three games and Robinson does not want to emulate that unenviable record.

"We are going to get in their faces," he growled. "We are not going there to sit and watch Ireland play and be the bridesmaids ourselves. We are going there to attack them - that's what we did in the first half against France. We know we can go to Ireland and win. There is a belief in the team that we can win." But the fates are not letting anything slip by. As if Robinson had not had enough injury problems with the loss of the props Phil Vickery and Julian White, yesterday he admitted that the red rose squad had suffered yet another blow.

The open-side flanker Lewis Moody was taken to hospital yesterday afternoon for assessment of and treatment to a septic finger and Sale's Chris Jones was consequently called up as cover. If Moody fails to recover in time then Gloucester's Andy Hazell will start the match and Jones will go on to the bench.

Robinson also found himself having to justify persisting with Charlie Hodgson as first choice goal-kicker after the Sale fly-half's poor showing with the boot at Twickenham.

"Hodgson will be our number one goal-kicker," said Robinson, "his state of mind is very good. He responded well to the France game with his kicking for Sale last Friday against Leeds."

The man himself responded in fighting fashion. "I don't need other people to rub it in, to tell me this, to tell me that," said Hodgson. "At the end of the day I know myself what I am doing wrong." Dave Alred, England's specialist kicking coach, insisted: "I am confident in his ability."

But once that little matter was out of the way poor old Robinson then found himself defending Jason Robinson's captaincy. "I think Jason has captained the side well and his leadership off the pitch this week has been really good. His one-on-one meetings with players have been excellent.

"On the pitch we have a number of leaders, with No 8, and the half-backs the crucial positions in attack. But there are enough time-outs in a game for Jason to make any point he wants to make."

What Robinson clearly fears though is the line-out. "That will be a huge battle," he admitted, "Just look at the way they tore us apart last year. Our line-out has improved since Wales, but against Ireland it will be under the most intense pressure.

"We are all having to take responsibility for the line-out, the lifting, the jumping and the options. It will go up a notch, it has to because if it doesn't function we will be in for a torrid time."

Not even the prospect of facing an Ireland side without Gordon D'Arcy, whose brilliance in the centre tormented the life out of England last year, was cause for much comfort for the red rose brigade. Phil Larder explained: "It will just be a different threat from what D'Arcy posed last year. Shane Horgan is a very direct runner and that gives them go-forward. They are a fairly balanced side.

"But the person we have to give most respect to is their fly-half Ronan O'Gara, he guides them around the park and gets them territory." He also kicks his goals and another factor for England to consider has to be the giving away of penalties. Against France, Dimitri Yachvili punished them mortally and O'Gara is perfectly capable of doing the same.

"We have been working really hard on our rucking," said Robinson. We have to blast in contact and make sure we protect the ball and then win it dynamically and get quick ball for Harry [Ellis] at scrum-half.

"That is a key area for us, the speed of the ball. We have to focus on the way we want to play and therefore we have to generate quick ball at the ruck."

Overall though the mood in the England camp, according to Robinson, is fine. "Obviously everyone was disappointed with what has happened so far, and all the criticism there has been, but the mood is good."

So England intend to come out of the traps on Sunday snapping and snarling determined to make something of what promises to be a dogfight.