David Sisi did manage the only try of the game for England, but it was the kicking of scrum-half Tom Ecochard that proved too much for the visitors.

And Hunter insisted that his side will now have to quickly turn their attentions to Ireland next week who will be chasing a Grand Slam of their own at Adams Park.

“We can be proud of the guys – we did well to stay in the game, we were under pressure for long periods but we stuck in there and defended very well,” said Hunter.

“The lads are hurting at the moment but I hope that this loss stands them in good stead. It’s great to keep winning, of course it is, but even if we had won this game the lessons learnt would have remained the same.

“We need to regroup, review this loss and move on to Ireland next week.”

Skipper on the day Chris Walker admitted it was England’s inability to gain parity up front which eventually cost them the game, with a French front row of Sébastien Taofifenua, Christopher Tolofua and Pascal Cotet enjoying dominance in the scrum.

Walker said: “We’re absolutely gutted, there was a lot of emotion at the end of the game and we’re really disappointed about the loss.

“We play the game to win and ultimately we weren’t able to do that against a good, strong French side.

“They dominated the set-piece and that cost us, but we’ve got a massive game against Ireland to look forward to – we’re disappointed, but this will make us stronger.”