Andrew: Long wait has pitfalls

How England must wish the World Cup was being played this October instead of in two years' time.

Winning it, as the All Blacks know only too well, is all about timing and right now nobody would relish the prospect of stopping the only team unbeaten in Europe this season.

Another tremendous win and another stack of tries will make this year special no matter what happens during the rest of it, but I wonder whether history will prove that 2001 was the best year for this particular England squad. The best in the world? Well, the only way to prove that is to win the World Cup.

Two and a half years is a long time to wait for the next one and I wonder whether it might not be too long for the 30-plus brigade, Jason Leonard, Dorian West, Neil Back and Martin Johnson. While Johnno will probably get there, my worry would be that others won't and that some very important people will have to be replaced.

The most significant difference between this team and the one which failed at the World Cup two years ago is to be found in midfield. In Jonny Wilkinson, Mike Catt and Will Greenwood, England at last have a midfield unit as good as any in the world.

They really have evolved over the last 12 months into a very special trio with a range of skills which has allowed England to play with such variety and imagination. Wilkinson and Catt have an almost telepathic ability to inter-change and switch the point of attack.

On top of Jonny's ability to pass it short or long and Mike's readiness to attack defences with pace, Greenwood's knack of off-loading from the tackle has been another crucial element in enabling England to spread the game wide. Balshaw, Austin Healey, Ben Cohen and Jason Robinson have all flourished whereas, at the last World Cup, the midfield created little. Jerry Guscott didn't fire, Greenwood didn't play particularly well and it all came six months too soon for Jonny.

France made a game of it for 50 minutes on Saturday but, once their thin veneer of confidence had been stripped, it was only a matter of how many England would score.