England manager Martin Johnson and captain Steve Borthwick have plenty of food for thought ahead of the Six Nations © Getty Images

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England manager Martin Johnson has been given a vote of confidence despite losing two out of three autumn internationals.

Johnson's side brought the curtain down on their end of year campaign with a 19-6 loss at the hands of New Zealand at Twickenham, following defeat against Australia and a poor performance in narrow victory against Argentina. England have scored just one try in those three matches and faced widespread criticism for their performances but Martyn Thomas, chairman of the Rugby Football Union, insists Johnson is the man to take England through to the 2011 World Cup.

"I've got every confidence in Martin. The guy is an outstanding character," said Thomas. "This is a guy who doesn't walk away from things. He's an excellent man-manager. He was a great captain on the field and is an outstanding man."

Johnson's coaching team have been singled out for criticism but the England boss has reaffirmed his support of forwards coach John Wells, backs coach Brian Smith, defence coach Mike Ford and scrum specialist Graham Rowntree. "I'm happy with the coaching team. Considering what they've been through, they've done a brilliant job," he said following their latest reverse. "Absolutely this is the team I want for the Six Nations."

Thomas, however, maintained the RFU would support Johnson should he wish to tweak his backroom staff. Seaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, he said, "Martin's getting on and doing the job and we can be satisfied with yesterday. Martin is a winner. I'm perfectly comfortable that Martin Johnson is the right man. If he decides he wants to do something then so be it, we'll back him. At the moment Martin has made it clear he is happy with his coaching team."

Asked whether things might change if England had a poor Six Nations tournament, which starts in two months time, Thomas said, "We don't go around firing coaches. We tend to sit back and look at what's happening. At the moment he has my confidence to continue and carry on. Martin will lead us into the World Cup in 2011 for sure."

Thomas also revealed that the RFU expect to appoint a new chief executive to replace Francis Baron, who announced his departure last week, by the summer. "I would hope we would have the right man in post in time for the RFU AGM on July 4."

In related news, captain Steve Borthwick has rounded on England's critics after his side had demonstrated some long-awaited fire despite another defeat.

"Every loss hurts and I can't put into words the emotions of the guys. On one side they are absolutely devastated by the loss. On the other side I am proud of the effort and the way the guys have stood tight because there have been lots of people taking pot shots at us and trying to split this group and the guys have stayed tremendously tight.

"There are huge positives to come out of these three games. James Haskell has stepped up to prove he is an exemplary, top-class player at this level. The way Lewis Moody has played. The way our squad has coped with injuries. And the ones who have come back into the international fold such as Steve Thompson and Jonny Wilkinson. Plus the experience Matt Banahan now has at international level."