MARTIN JOHNSON needs to brace himself for a culture shock, because there is a home truth about the England elite player squad: it is decidedly average. Johnson’s world champions of 2003 gave everybody the jitters, but this lot scares nobody. The side Johnno captained had talent and dedication, from every member of the pack to backs such as Jason Robinson, Jonny Wilkinson, Will Greenwood, Matt Dawson and, when they were at their best, Mike Tindall and Iain Balshaw.

When Johnson was at Leicester there were always guiding lights such as Dean Richards. The club churned out England internationals, and he was brought up in that culture and flourished in it. When he first came into the England side it was the same - when he replaced Wade Dooley he was surrounded by seasoned internationals. Johnson never played in a bad England team. They were always in contention for a Six Nations title, and on each of his Lions tours - 1993, 1997, and 2001 - they had every chance to win.

By comparison, the England squad he starts with is a mess, with nothing approaching a settled side or structure of play for the past five years. Underpinning all of this is a lack of conditioning, which is the one element in international rugby that is more about hard work than ability.

Johnson’s world champions were the fittest side out there, and those fitness levels took three years to achieve, whereas now England are no more than a holding operation. When they go behind they slow things down and try to go through the forwards, because they do not have the gears to speed up the game. This lot need to realise that the fitness levels required to compete at the highest international level go way beyond those in the Premiership and Heineken Cup. New Zealand have that level now, but England do not, and the only guys we have who can live with them are Harry Ellis, Danny Cipriani, James Haskell, Paul Sackey and a resurgent Josh Lewsey.

That’s five out of 64, and the fact that England have fallen so far off the required standard is scary. These guys don’t seem prepared to make the sacrifice. I hated putting myself through the pain barrier, but the reason you go through it is the confidence it gives you. It is when your lungs feel as if they’ve been dynamited after a nonstop 15 phases that it pulls you through, and you know you can keep going because your recovery is almost instant.

Johnson was fortunate to have played in an era of talent, but he also stood out for making the most of every attribute he had. He accepted every challenge, and his self-motivation was remarkable. He was not the greatest physical specimen to look at but he was his own toughest taskmaster and his consistency of performance was unsurpassed.

However, he wasn’t alone, because Lawrence Dallaglio, Richard Hill and Neil Back were all peas out of the same pod. Brian Ashton, then the backs’ coach, tested the forwards’ footballing and handling skills, and talked to them about support lines normally reserved for backs, and these guys grasped it, and upped their game. That’s why England could play an all-court game by the time 2003 came along, whereas the class of 2008 have difficulty keeping the ball on the court.

Not long after Clive Woodward came in he got his fitness coach, Dave Reddin, to put up a slide showing New Zealand at the top of the fitness graph and England below them. Johnson must take stock in the same way. Part of the problem has been a lack of competition for places, so let’s get some. Anybody with any ambition, this is your time. Some of the England Under20s, who won a Grand Slam and reached the final of the World Cup a few weeks ago, are in with a shout. Patience with the seniors is dwindling because many have been around for ages and have not produced.

Johnson has no coaching or managing background other than what he gleaned as captain of Leicester, England and the Lions, so he has to learn on the hoof, and the problem as an international coach is that you get no time. He might get a little bit of leeway if England perform well, and are bold and brave when they lose - as they were at first under Woodward - but very quickly he will be judged on results.

Johnson’s challenge is to create an environment where you are picked on merit and there is consistency of performance and selection. The one big positive for Johnson is that he knows every aspect of what it takes for an England rugby team to perform at its best. Now he has to find a way of recreating it.