Stephen Ferris: 'We want a reaction next week now'

Ireland should have won, but England deserved to win.

The defending Six Nations champions came within seconds of keeping their push for back-to-back Grand Slams alive away to England, but Marcus Smith's dropgoal with the clock in the red nudged England 23-22 in front with the final kick of the game, sealing a victory that few thought would be possible.

When we say Ireland "should" have won, we say that because they were two points up with the ball in their hands and less than 90 seconds on the clock.

The reality is that England were played smarter, faster, and more aggressive, and were the better side over the course of the 80 minutes.

"We keep going back to it, the better team won today, and Ireland have to accept that," Jamie Heaslip said on RTÉ Sport's coverage from Twickenham yesterday.

The former Ireland captain had been one of the many who gave the hosts a slim chance of derailing the Grand Slam bandwagon.

And Heaslip says while they deserved their win over Andy Farrell's side, the criticism they had faced in the last fortnight following their dismal defeat to Scotland was justified.

"They've great players. The argument is with the way they have been playing and trying to change a lot. It's clicked for them.

"But if you're relying on just emotional energy to get you up every time, that's not sustainable. Consistency in your performance is what you've got to really strive for, and they haven't been consistent

"They were the better team on the day and it's a great day and they should enjoy it." he added.

Stephen Ferris joined Heaslip and Bernard Jackman on the RTÉ panel, and says Steve Borthwick's side spun that criticism into a positive.

"I think there's a feeling among the English fans that the English media almost like to