The Wasps wing gave the verdict after England had finished third in the RBS 6 Nations Championship following a thrilling but ultimately revealing 24-21 defeat against France in Paris.

Just four months after a ruthlessly conclusive 24-7 World Cup semi-final triumph against the French in Sydney, England suffered a bitterly disappointing defeat at the Stade de France.

Now with inspirational captain Martin Johnson retired, Neil Back and Jason Leonard also gone, plus the unfortunate injury to play-maker Jonny Wilkinson, Woodwards team appear vulnerable after so long seeming impregnable.

While England have slowed, France - their young stars having gained from their World Cup experience - have taken a large stride forward.

It was a scenario recognised by Lewsey, who followed up Ben Cohens touchdown by scoring Englands second try via a typically virtuoso solo run with just minutes to go to set up a tense and dramatic finale.

Jo Maso (the French manager) has said England are a war machine and they dominate teams physically and mentally," said Lewsey.

Weve gone away from that slightly. We need to play with more width and creativity like we did in the second half and show that if you put teams under pressure your chances will come.

The key now is the scale and speed of Woodwards rebuilding and his ability to restore the fire to a forward pack once feared for its size and savagery but which, with Danny Grewcocks first-half injury, lost its one member whose bite matches his bark.

It will be tested to its limit soon enough when England face New Zealand twice and Australia once in a summer tour of the antipodes.

The one thing they have going for them, however, is their honesty.

If were frank, France deserved the Grand Slam, admitted Lewsey.

Theyve been the best team in the tournament. Well take the lessons on board because well need to improve 50% if we are going to compete in the southern hemisphere in the summer.

We tried to play too much rugby in our own half and their kicking game was fantastic. Turnovers kill a team. You cant defend against them.

The positives out of it are that we won that half by a lot of points, added Lewsey. Weve had a lot of stick in the last couple of weeks about the way we play rugby but in the second half we were back to where we want to be.

I dont think the squad has gone backwards. Its the same players and the same coaches. Its just been a difficult year.