Greenwood applies finishing touch to exciting glimpse of future

It was not merely victory that had the England party smiling all the way to the banquet on Saturday, rather it was a stirring glimpse of the future, and some serious potential for the World Cup later this year.

It needed a threequarter, though, to put it into words and acknowledge what everyone had seen. Will Greenwood was happy to oblige, especially after having scored his sixth try in Anglo-Welsh international conflicts, matching the feat of two famous names.

"My Dad mentioned me in the same breath as Rory Underwood and Gerald Davies, for having scored six tries in Anglo-Welsh games," said Greenwood, whose tally in 35 England appearances is now an impressive 22 tries. "I am very honoured and proud to be mentioned in the same sentence as those boys, but I can only thank the forwards for an outstanding performance.

"These games are won in the front five, whatever [Ben] Cohen and [Dan] Luger like to think. It is the front five who win these games away from home and they certainly earned their corn."

Among the trio was the prop Robbie Morris, who was 21 two days before his international debut. And to judge by the reaction of the England manager Clive Woodward, Morris is going to be a major force in the game.

"I thought Morris had a great game," said Woodward as he contemplated the depth of talent he can draw on. Morris was drafted in because of a perceived front row crisis due to injury. Now the attitude is, crisis, what crisis?

"That was a big question we asked of him against a pretty experienced Welsh front row," Woodward continued, "and I thought he was fantastic, especially in those scrums on the line. We have two world-class tightheads in Phil Vickery and Julian White, now we have blooded a third guy in a stern test."

His captain, Martin Johnson, insisted England did not have an easy ride up front, or anywhere else for that matter. "I thought at times, we were stretched pretty much to the limit," said the Leicester lock. "They put us under a lot of pressure. It was tough, especially early on, we didn't get much going through the forwards, we didn't get much drive going either."

For Woodward, there was a lot more to rejoice over. "The positives for me are huge," he said. "I was also pleased with Charlie Hodgson. The decision to play Hodgson at centre was a good one, he has coped brilliantly well. It is not the final solution, but it has given him some game time, which is very important. We all know Jonny Wilkinson is the best fly-half in the world, but I believe we now have two world class 10s."

Then there was the return of Lawrence Dallaglio. "Dallaglio's form means I am in a fantastic position; Worsley came on and did brilliantly," said the manager who is now looking decidedly spoiled for choice pretty well everywhere he looks.

The short term does not look quite so bright on the injury front, however. "Jason Robinson [wrenched knee] and Neil Back [calf strain] are the two major concerns, and I do not expect to see Lewis Moody back for the rest of the championship," Woodward said.

But with two weeks to go before the next clutch of Six Nations matches, and a few months before the World Cup, things are looking a lot rosier for England.