Martin Johnson: I will make England great again

Martin Johnson promised to take England back to the top of world rugby when he was officially unveiled as the country's new team manager at Twickenham today.

But the 2003 World Cup-winning captain said he has "huge sympathy" for ousted head coach Brian Ashton as Rugby Football Union chief executive Francis Baron conceded mistakes had been made in the recruitment process.

It was also revealed Ashton is considering taking the role of RFU Academy chief and won't be taking legal action against the governing body over the manner of his sacking.

Johnson also confirmed that Ashton refused to take a No2 role in his new coaching set-up.

The former lock admitted he was putting his reputation on the line as he outlined his ambitions for the national team.

He said: "My vision is that we should be competing with the best in the world.

"At times we've been doing that, as we did in the World Cup Final last year, but at times we haven't.

"If you watch the rugby being played by very young players in the Premiership against some of the best players in the world, it's just tremendous. Part of the job is to create a culture, a team ethos. It's not rocket science.

"There is every chance, every possibility, we can beat most teams around the world."

Johnson also defended his suitability for the job after critics questioned his lack of coaching experience.