Robinson may pay price of world champ's fall from grace

If England are thinking what was once considered unthinkable, namely replacing Andy Robinson as head coach, they will have to act quickly or not at all.

He was promoted not only to fill Sir Clive Woodward's shoes but to walk the line that won England the World Cup in Australia in 2003.

Robinson's contract, which expires in June 2008, was designed to give England continuity going into next year's global showpiece but he may not last that long.

The case against is that his Six Nations record - the no-show against France in Paris was the seventh defeat in 14 matches in Europe since the Cup and the heaviest in the championship for 20 years.

It was the shocking manner of the decline against the French that has had the inevitable effect of nudging Robinson closer to the trapdoor. The 31-6 defeat raised questions about his leadership and judgment. It wasn't just that England were beaten, they were demolished.

This time last year Robinson was complaining about being on the receiving end of a series of one-eyed refereeing decisions and he pointed out, with some justification, that narrow defeats to Wales, France and Ireland could easily have been victories.

Even after the 18-12 overture of defeat by Scotland last month he claimed that England had created eight try-scoring opportunities and squandered the lot. After the retreat from Paris Robinson, for the first time, had no excuses. He was in a state of shock.

"We were awful," he said, "and as the person in charge it is important I take responsibility."

After Robinson joined as forwards coach in 2000, England won 41 of their next 50 matches, a fantastic record.

Now they are in a state with which they are wholly unfamiliar. They were tryless against Scotland and France, prompting wholesale changes for the match against Ireland.

He had already been guilty of suspect selections and the recall of Matt Dawson, who was dropped from the elite player squad two years ago, has not been a success.

When Robinson was promoted, he was described as a "passionate Englishman and a winner".

He is not wholly to blame for what has happened. Yes, he has made mistakes, but the mix has never looked right since the departure of the backs coach Brian Ashton.

It meant that Robinson had to work with two former league men in Joe Lydon and Phil Larder and the partnership clearly has not worked.

Lydon's philosophy was for the players to have "supreme, collective self-belief". "I want to remove all restrictions and set them free."

Yet they have never looked more shackled.

An aberration in the ramshackle performance against the French was the collapse of Charlie Hodgson.

Last season he missed three short-range penalties at Twickenham as England saw a 17-6 lead turn into an 18-17 victory for France.

The confidence of the first-five who gave the impression of finally emerging from Jonny Wilkinson's shadow, seems fragile to the point of non-existence.

Robinson's first decision as head coach was to appoint Wilkinson as his captain, so he hasn't had much luck there either. At the time Wilkinson said: "I'm thrilled Andy is in charge."

If Robinson is good enough for Wilkinson he should be good enough for England.

He is ferociously honest and takes defeat more personally than Sir Clive - and the knight detested every rare moment of it. Robinson looked isolated, almost bereft, at the Stade de France.

I would not get rid of him but England could ease the pressure by appointing a team manager, a move favoured by Martyn Thomas, the RFU chairman.

Whatever England decide it should be in place before they travel to Australia in the northern summer. The Wallabies do not tolerate defeat either. Remember Eddie Jones? He's now a consultant at Saracens.

- INDEPENDENT