Ford proud of England

Editor

England fly-half George Ford has urged his team-mates not to forget the recent progress they have made as they return to club duty this week.

Despite putting 55 points on France in their impressive Round Five victory, the English finished second in the 2015 Six Nations standings behind Ireland.

Ford embodied those contrasting feelings at full-time following a superb individual display that featured a try, two penalties and seven conversions.

"We're obviously gutted to miss out on the Championship but that performance today was something to be proud of," he explained to EnglandRugby.com.

"To put 55 points on a top quality team like France was excellent. 

"There were things we could have done better and things we were sloppy with at times, but the courage we showed and the way we played was something we can be proud of."

England's players spoke in a huddle at the final whistle as captain Chris Robshaw praised their performances in the Six Nations, Ford revealed.

"Chris said that we've come a long way over this eight weeks during the Six Nations. We've done a lot of good things, especially in attack, and we've got to take that forward to the next time we meet up," the fly-half said.

"There are some important games for our clubs over the rest of the season but we can't forget what we've done and how far we've come this series.

"The attack was outstanding today. We scored most of the opportunities we created. We still left a few out there, which we'll always be disappointed about, but our attack has come on leaps and bounds from the first game [against Wales]."