Change is inevitable after England slumped to their worst performance in World Cup history, admits the Rugby Football Union chief executive Ian Ritchie.
A 33-13 defeat to Australia at Twickenham – a record losing margin to the Wallabies – condemned England to become the first host nation to exit the tournament at the group phase.
The future of head coach Stuart Lancaster and his assistants Andy Farrell, Graham Rowntree and Mike Catt are in grave doubt and the inquest will begin once the World Cup is over, although Ritchie refuses to outline a timescale or format for the review.
The position of Ritchie himself is equally precarious having appointed Lancaster and taken the bold step 12 months ago of awarding him and his lieutenants new contracts to run until 2020 despite the failure to win any silverware of note.
When asked if there would be change, Ritchie said: “Absolutely. We’ve spent a lot of time looking forward over the last two to three years and now we need to look at what we need to do next.
“But we need to be clear that this is not a time for knee-jerk reaction. It’s not a time to rush into things.
“I would like to stress there will be no hasty reaction to England’s performance in this World Cup.
“It’s a time for calm, rational reflection about what we can learn and how we can move forward. About what do we need to do to improve.”
Ritchie, who addressed the media alongside a shellshocked Lancaster at the squad’s Surrey training base on Sunday morning, was asked if England’s elimination from their own World Cup just 16 days into the tournament marked the darkest hour in the nation’s rugby history.
“Yes, there is no denying the impact of what has happened. We were all aware of the importance and objectives of the World Cup, of which the team performance was one. Clearly it has been a very difficult day,” he said.
“I feel a lot for the fans. The atmosphere and support have been absolutely fantastic, so we all feel a sense of disappointment about what’s happened and a sense of the need to move on.”
England’s nightmare scenario of a group exit was made possible by the 28-25 defeat to Wales, and the curtain came down after they capitulated to the dazzling ingenuity of the Wallabies.
It is Wales and Australia who will progress from the toughest group in tournament history – they meet for first place in Pool A at Twickenham on Saturday – while the hosts face an inglorious climax against Uruguay in Manchester.
A shaken Lancaster, who at one stage during Sunday’s briefing seemed close to tears, is adamant he will remain at the helm during a week of tortuous preparation.
“All things are being considered, but I won’t be walking away for now. I’ve just sat in front of the coaching team and said we’ve got a game to play this Saturday,” Lancaster said.
“It’s not the time now to make a decision like that. My priority is to get the team ready for Uruguay.
“We are gutted as a team and as a coaching team to have not got the win against Australia that would have got us through to the quarter-finals.
