Les Bleus enter the match in an ideal position as the only side able to clinch the Grand Slam following victories over Ireland, Italy, Wales and Scotland.

England, on the other hand, started the tournament as world champions and overwhelming favourites but failed to live up to their billing with a surprise 19-13 defeat against the Irish at Twickenham.

They can still win the championship by beating France by eight points, however, while Ireland also have a slender chance of overall honours if England beat France and then the Irish post a cricket score against Scotland.

And Brusque is now hoping to inflict a second tournament loss on Clive Woodwards men when the sides clash at the Stade de France.

We were deeply hurt by our loss in the World Cup semi final, and its true that (Jonny) Wilkinson dented our ambitions seriously but we learnt our lesson, Brusque said.

We will be eager to catch up. I watched the tape of the semi-final for 15 minutes and then I stopped because I felt too bad.

This match on Saturday will be an opportunity for us to put this defeat behind us.

I hope we will go and shake the hands of the English at the end of the match the same way they did after our lost semi-final.

I know this will be an extra motivation to beat us. They will come to Paris to show that they are the world champions.

Having started the World Cup as outsiders, France gradually imposed themselves as one of the favourites following impressive wins over Fiji, Japan, Scotland, the United States and above Ireland in the quarter-finals.

But a powerful England side, coupled with some difficult wet conditions in Sydney, shattered their ambitions.

However, Brusque also believes the French were just not ready for the match with England in Australia.

I really wondered whether we prepared well for the clash, he admitted.

This defeat was a slap in the face but helped us grow because now, even though our game is not perfect, we hold on.

We speak a lot between us, the players, about this world cup defeat and I think that we all agree that we did not prepare it well.

The rain surprised us, it was an external element which we did not control when we actually dominated our game.

We could control everything except that. And this will not happen again.