Ireland head coach Andy Farrell says victory against Wales sets his Grand Slam-chasing side up well for their visit to Twickenham to face England.
Ireland’s 31-7 win at Aviva Stadium on Saturday kept alive their dream of securing back-to-back Six Nations Grand Slams.
Next up on March 9 is a game against Steve Borthwick’s side, who were beaten 30-21 by Scotland in the third round.
“We’re looking forward to it,” said Farrell.
“The Wales win sets us up nicely and we’ve earned the right to get to this point. Going to Twickenham, everyone knows how tough a task it is, but it is exciting.”
England may be battling for Six Nations respectability after their defeat by Scotland, whilst Ireland could win the championship with a bonus-point victory at Twickenham.
After a tricky second half against Warren Gatland’s side as Ireland recorded their 18th straight home win, Farrell insists there are still areas for his side to improve on when they take on England.
“The game [at Twickenham] will take its own shape and there are parts of our game that we need to improve, that will be no different against England,” he said.
Farrell is enthused about the prospect of taking on Borthwick’s team, who have switched to a ‘blitz’ defence approach under new defensive coach Felix Jones. Jones helped South Africa win back-to-back World Cups.
“It is certainly different. We know it is a South African defence and I know that Felix will constantly try and put his stamp on it and implement it,” Farrell explained.
“There will always be teething problems at the start, but they’ll go harder, there is no doubt about that because that is the philosophy.
“We have come up against that type of defence before and it is exciting, we look forward to taking that on.”
