© Mike Egerton / PA Wire

Harlequins and England fullback Mike Brown has worked with his fair share of terrifying coaches who could hold a hairdryer to Sir Alex Ferguson's infamous dressing downs. The new England head coach Eddie Jones is also famed for delivering some 'spray' in the direction of those who are underperforming but previous experiences will see Brown prepared for any barbs thrown his way, if as expected he is retained in the England squad.

"I'm used to these scary people," Brown tells ESPN. "I've had Dean Richards when I was a young lad. Conor [O'Shea, Harlequins coach] can lose his head if he needs to, Stuart [Lancaster, ex-England coach] could lose his temper as could Andy Farrell. It's nothing different there."

When Jones took the job he spoke of this being a 'clean slate'; the message was that whatever happened in the past stays there. But there will inevitably be some fallout from England's disastrous World Cup campaign. The ignominy remains, the carrot of opportunities missed lies decaying and the burning desire to right wrongs is there. Then there were the post-World Cup leaks, an incidence which prompted Brown to talk of a lack of trust within the confines of their Pennyhill Park retreat. These need to be ironed out first.

"I am sure whoever is picked by him will sit down in a room and sort things out, put it all to bed," says Brown. "To move on, that needs to be done. But that'll take an hour and then it's all sorted and the players will crack on."

Mike Brown during Harlequins European Champions Cup clash with Montpellier© Dan Mullan/Getty Images

It was September 9 when Brown was standing on Putney Bridge. Dressed in his suit, red tie, polished black leather shoes, some of the players were waiting to be picked up to be taken to the O2 Arena for their 'Wear the Rose' send-off evening. Alongside Take That, all manner of red confetti and various volleys of national pride, there was a feeling of blind optimism. Brown's likeness was immortalised in a giant cartoon as part of an advert; it seemed all that was left was the small matter of England going out and winning the World Cup.

Now, that memory haunts him. "I was driving through Putney with the missus the other day and we drove over the bridge," Brown says. "That was where we got picked up before our O2 event so I turned to her and said 'well that's just brought back memories of that and then what followed'. That was great fun, but it went from there to a massive low.

"After we were knocked out of the tournament I didn't watch too much of it, I can't remember if I watched any of the games. We played Bath on the day of the final so I was focused on that. I didn't want to think about it.

"You still read about the World Cup failure now, so it's always there and it drives you on to get better."

The comfort of Brown's performances in the World Cup - he was arguably England's best player - are little consolation. The wounds cut deep so it was a case of utilising that hurt for personal improvement and that came at Harlequins, a club he signed a new long-term deal with in early November.

"Once I got back from the World Cup and saw the changes in the club with the new signings, there was a new focus. We are so focused on winning silverware and that's the same with the new guys. The new recruits are great on and off the field. There's a real feeling of being energised and we've changed the couple of things that let us down the last couple of years and I love being in London. It was a no-brainer."

The players were offered time off but Brown wanted to immerse himself among the people he has known since he was in their academy - "they are my close mates" - and from there comes a gradual process of moving on to the next chapter. But the World Cup will remain in the back of his mind.

On December 27, at about 14.30, Brown and his Harlequins team-mates will be walking over the A316 on the footbridge from the Stoop to Twickenham for 'Big Game 8' against Gloucester. It will be Brown's first time back on the pitch at HQ since Australia ruthlessly ended England's World Cup campaign. That memory will linger, but so too will the highs of 2012 when his Harlequins side won the Premiership title there and all the positive memories of playing for England.

Twickenham has been in Brown's psyche since he was five, that burning desire to play for England has been there since he first dreamt of running out at the famous old ground. Now with 250 appearances for Harlequins to his name and 43 England caps, he knows about that rollercoaster of emotions which is tied to professional sport.

If -- and he emphasises the "if" -- he is included in Jones' first England squad then he is likely to be one of the more vocal in the first few team meetings. He has learned to channel his on-field passion into off-field analysis - the mark of a good leader.

"Off the field I like to listen and take it in, take in that information. But on the field - you can see in the way I play - I spend my time shouting, trying to communicate and being in your face. But this season I have been trying to get involved in meetings and speaking up, giving feedback. That comes with maturing, the experience of playing all those games for Quins and England. I have grown in confidence off the field."

The players now face a time of limbo - they don't really know how Jones wants his team to play, nor who he favours so it is a case of head down, focus on club duties and then a trust in their own ability. It is the same, on a perhaps grander scale, for Chris Robshaw, England's captain for their ill-fated World Cup bid. Jones has said he will meet with Robshaw to discuss the World Cup and where he fits in within the new era and bookies have reacted by putting him at long odds to retain the captaincy. Brown is currently ahead in their mind but such suggestions are given admirable short shrift.

© Paul Gilham/Getty Images

"As far as I'm concerned, Chris Robshaw is England captain and he has done a brilliant job. Until I hear different. That's the case. He's not someone who expects anything for free. He's playing really well and that's all he can do, continue to play well. Once the team's picked then Eddie will look at captaincy, but until then we are all trying to play as well as we can."

The ghosts of the World Cup will only be exorcised by silverware with England, but for Brown it all starts with Quins. The focus will be on London Irish come Saturday and then stand-out events like the match against Gloucester at Twickenham in the festive period.

"In the short-term, as I run out for any game I just focus on my job in the team and maybe a few things we've said about the opposition. You just want to get into the game early so I focus on the high ball, my running and kicking. I try to focus on my role in the team.

"And then looking ahead, I want to get back in that England squad and get into the starting XV. Hopefully we'll win silverware at Quins and achieve what we did [winning the Premiership] in 2012 as that was an incredible moment. You want to do that all over again."