John Mitchell insists England refuse to be seduced by their four-Test winning run against Ireland as they prepare to face relentless opposition in Dublin on Saturday.
The rivals clash in their final outings of the 2021 Guinness Six Nations with Eddie Jones' team looking to build on their 23-20 victory over France in round four that has rescued their championship from disaster.
England's last loss in the fixture came in 2018 and since then Ireland have struggled to match their physicality, but defence coach Mitchell insists past results will be meaningless when the countries clash for the 138th time.
💬 England's defence coach has been speaking about the game tomorrow ☘🏴 Get more quotes and some of the latest news in Test Talk ⤵ — England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) March 19, 2021
"You never have Ireland's number. They're a tenacious side and a tenacious country," Mitchell said.
"They fight bloody hard for each other. They'll rip in, there's no doubt about that. But we're ready for all that.
"They'll see the breakdown as an opportunity against us. It's going to be a war at the breakdown which is something we're ready for.
"It comes down to being able to get on to the front foot and being able to implant how we want to play the game. We have to get on to the front foot and stop their momentum."
