Captain Steve Borthwick rounded on England's critics after his side had demonstrated some long-awaited fire despite another defeat to the All Blacks.
Borthwick has borne the brunt of the flak during a disappointing end-of-year series in which England has lost to Australia, narrowly beaten Argentina and on Saturday lost 19-6 to New Zealand
Former England stars such as Will Greenwood had even advised manager Martin Johnson to sack his skipper and coaching staff before he was 'dragged down with them'.
But Borthwick insists that negativity has only served to unify the England team.
"Every loss hurts and I can't put into words the emotions of the guys. On one side they are absolutely devastated by the loss," he said.
"On the other side I am proud of the effort and the way the guys have stood tight because there have been lots of people taking pot shots at us and trying to split this group and the guys have stayed tremendously tight."
In a determined first half against New Zealand it looked as if the increased passion levels might even deliver a famous victory.
England shrugged off the disappointment of losing Joe Worsley after two minutes with a knee injury.
It played 'In your face' rugby. Halfback Paul Hodgson injected energy. England forwards exerted real control for the first time in recent memory. It looked like a team who actually had a game plan, rather than the kick-the-ball-away bunch who had somehow beaten Argentina in a confusion of awfulness the week before.
Borthwick said: "There are huge positives to come out of these three games. James Haskell has stepped up to prove he is an exemplary, top-class player at this level. The way Lewis Moody has played. The way our squad has coped with injuries."
"And the ones who have come back into the international fold such as Steve Thompson and Jonny Wilkinson. Plus the experience Matt Banahan now has at international level."
The problem with 'positives' in defeat, however, is that they attract negatives and the fact is that England scored only one try in its three matches and rarely looked capable of adding more.
There is a dearth of creativity, one which reflects unfavourably on first five-eighth Wilkinson for all his undeniable courage and goal-kicking acumen.
Wilkinson is not the player he was back in 2003 and his poor game management and aimless kicking from hand on Saturday would have been more exposed if All Black counterpart Dan Carter, who missed two penalties from in front of the posts, had not experienced a less than perfect day at the office.
As it was the England player who caught the eye most was Simon Shaw, the 36-year-old lock who reminded fans of what the aggression was like when Johnson himself was roaming rugby HQ before leaving the fray deep into the second half with a neck injury.
Shaw, beard greying these days but who gets around the park as well as ever, is not one to embroider.
Is there a chance of him going on to the 2011 World Cup, he was asked.
"Let's hope so," he replied. "I don't see any reason why not. But it's a fair way away."
What keeps the enthusiasm going?
"Seeing mates who have retired looking miserable," he added.
After which he was pressed to sum up the encounter.
"We restored a bit of pride. We gave it our all," he said.
"Unfortunately the first