Former England coach Stuart Lancaster has dismissed the notion that under his stewardship the team were 'nice".
Lancaster was at the helm between 2012 and 2015. It was a tenure that ended when England, as hosts for the World Cup, failed to advance from the group stages.
His successor Eddie Jones has gone on to oversee a 16-match unbeaten run - a winning sequence that began with England winning the 2016 Six Nations.
As a guest on Against The Head on RTÉ2 television, it was put to Lancaster that maybe England needed the bit of nastiness, a bit of edge to fully realise their potential.
In response, Lancaster said: "It's an easy thing for the media to say 'we were too nice'. My record overall was pretty good. We lost a game in the World Cup we should have won and that changed everything.
"Eddie has done one fantastic job. You look at his record - 16 games on the bounce. The three wins in Australia, the Six Nations last year."
Stuart Lancaster dismisses the notions that his England were "a nice team"#rterugby pic.twitter.com/w4gy4hsWOQ
— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) February 20, 2017
Lancaster, who is now involved as one of the senior coaches with Leinster, feels his input with England in player development has resulted in the side's successful run over the last year.
"I look back with pride at what we built and some frustration because I'm not there to finish the job," he added.
"I knew back in 2012 when I took the role we were going to develop a young team.
"I knew it was going to be hard work in terms of experience to get them to win the home World Cup but I backed myself to get the team there. We didn't achieve that and it was my responsibility.
"I felt the team would peak between 2015 and 2019 and I think we've seen the experience now come to the fore.
"The players have endured some big defeats along the way and have also lost some big club games. But crucially, they have now learned to win together and are a tight group.
"It's nice to see young players who I capped get their chance now."
Lancaster also spoke about his time so far with Leinster and has praised the province in the way they are nurturing the next generation.
"I can say with confidence that having worked in the English programme, the quality of players coming through the Leinster academy is very, very high," he revealed.
"To have so many internationals away at the moment and have the younger players stepping in and taking the opportunities, well it's really rewarding to give them their chance.
"Equally there are lads who we are coaching at the moment who haven't had that chance.
"The future is very bright, not just for Leinster but for Ireland."
Now part of the Leinster set-up, former England coach Stuart Lancaster on what the Leinster academy are doing to ensure success pic.twitter.com/R9Ehw0dV3n
— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) February 20, 2017
