The finger of blame has been pointed at coaches John Wells, Mike Ford and Brian Smith after England finished with just two victories in this year's championship.

But World Cup winner Johnson has leapt to the defence on his underfire staff and insists he won’t be forced into replacing the trio before the summer.

“I don’t anticipate making any changes,” said Johnson. “The coaches did an outstanding job this season, particularly in the autumn.

“It’s seems criticising has become the thing to do in English rugby. Mistakes happen on the field – perhaps coaches get things wrong. But a lot of the time it’s a player’s error which is a factor.

“The coaches have done a fantastic job in the face of criticism that is ill-informed a lot of the time.

“We’re in a results-driven business – if players don’t play well they’ll be out.”