‘We must emotionally get it right’
to be greater – to kick on and to win the Grand Slam. That motivation, to me, is greater than upsetting another team’s party,” said Hartley.
“Will Carling has been texting me today, telling me how great he was and wishing us good luck. We couldn’t be any tactically clearer and the combinations and the relationships couldn’t be any better. What we need to do now is emotionally get it right for this game.”
Haskell believes the implementation of Jones’s long-term plans for England supersedes the excitement of possibly eclipsing New Zealand’s record of 18 consecutive Test wins.
“I want to tell you that it [history] does have relevance but I’d just be lying,” he said. “It does just in terms of headlines, great news reports and excitement for fans but when you’re in it, the most important thing is getting the result and performance and playing the best you can.
“Yes, you have an awareness of these things and want to make sure you do the best you can and if the best you can do is winning titles and records then that’s important. But the most important thing is getting that performance out and making sure you leave the shirt in a better place than you found it. We will only celebrate if the job gets done.”
Ireland captain Rory Best warned England his injuryhit side have the ability to finish a disappointing campaign on a high.
“We want to show what we’re worth. Especially at home, it’s a big deal for us to put in a performance,” he said. “Ultimately, we want to finish with a massive result. I don’t think that their want is any more than ours.”