Graphic: Destiny in their hands

Retaining the World Cup would spread so much joy around the country, but I would be particularly happy for a few individuals. I am talking about the likes of Mark “Ronnie” Regan and Simon Shaw, who were fringe players at the 2003 tournament but have become stars of England’s extraordinary march on Paris.

Regan is a very competitive guy and it cannot have been easy for him not even making the bench for the climax in Australia four years ago. And I never found it easy to leave out Shaw because he was the closest thing we had to another Martin Johnson. It was his great misfortune that Johnson was one of the greatest players ever.

It has been fascinating for me hearing these guys, and other peripheral players from four years ago such as Andy Gomarsall and Martin Corry, talk about their determination to make sure that they are in the thick of the action this time. Some were gutted not to be more heavily involved in 2003, but they have talked only positively about the lessons learnt and I have only praise for each one.

I always believed that it would only have taken one person to break rank, one energy-sapper, one termite to infect the whole camp, but those guys took the decisions on selection the right way. They might have questioned why they had been left out, but always at the appropriate time.

When you are on the road for weeks and cooped up in an hotel, managing those on the margins can be as important as looking after the first team. I can name the eight players who were not involved in the final just as easily as the 22 who were. In many ways they were the real heroes: White, Regan, Shaw, Worsley, Gomarsall, Abbott, Grayson and Luger.

I wanted to make every member of our group feel part of our success and I believe that the experience cannot be underestimated now. England’s progress in France has been gloriously unexpected, but we should not forget that as many as 11 of Brian Ashton’s starting XV against France were involved in a winning campaign. These guys are world champions. The knowledge they gained is priceless. This is the reason why Brian picked this group of players when there were other less experienced but more talented players available.

The players have been candid about how they brought all that experience to bear after the 36-0 thrashing by South Africa in the pool stage. That is one meeting when I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall. Player power is one way of putting it, but that sounds like an uprising when it makes sense for Vickery, Dallaglio, Corry and Robinson to have their say if the team are in difficulty. You have only one chance. It is not a time to reflect. The worst words in sport are “if only”.

You can see the experience in the way that, against Australia and France, there has been no sense of panic heading into the closing stages of tense matches. In contrast, England’s opponents betrayed their fragility by going for ambitious dropped goals from their own half in the first few minutes. How both those teams must be regretting their approach. Instantly you sensed nervousness, but I would not expect the same of South Africa. They are a sharp bunch and have a kicker in Percy Montgomery who is as reliable as Jonny Wilkinson.

This will be the toughest game of the lot, by a considerable margin. When we played South Africa in 2003 we had beaten them the previous seven times. We knew we had the better of them.

This time, the Springboks have chalked up four consecutive victories against England and, if this were not such an unpredictable tournament, you would have to make them clear favourites. If England can stay in touch until 20 minutes to go, expect the nervousness to spread among the South Africans and England’s experience to come through. The big question is, can we stay in touch with them for the first hour?

They have a shrewd coaching staff, with Jake White pulling off a masterstroke in recruiting Eddie Jones as his assistant. Australia were stupid to allow Jones to slip away. By one appointment, South Africa covered their weakness – the lack of experience of coaching at a World Cup – and Jones has got them playing a more expansive game. However, just like Bernard Laporte, the France coach, Eddie is looking down the barrel of losing against England in two successive finals – not good on your CV, certainly when you are about to start coaching in England with Saracens.

White also showed how cleverly he could harness the best talent out there by taking on the brilliant Dr Sheryl Calder, the vision coach who was so integral to our success in 2003. Anybody heading to Paris on Saturday should get to the Stade de France early enough to watch the Springboks’ warm-up and some unusual practice exercises. It is Sheryl’s forte.

I do not think that there will be anything unexpected from either team in the final. England’s tactics are apparent to everybody and they will try to use their forwards to pile the pressure on South Africa and play the game 40 metres from the Springboks line for as long as possible. If they succeed, I suspect that I will be asked many more times to compare this triumph with the one four years ago. What I would say as a coach – and I am sure Brian Ashton would agree – is that I would always prefer to arrive as favourites. You want to turn up with the No 1 ranking and leave with the trophy, as we did in 2003.

That said, Brian did not have four years to prepare and the unexpected nature of England’s march on Paris makes it a fantastic Boy’s Own story. It has reminded us of sport’s wonderful capacity to surprise and it has made heroes of those who might never have expected their day in the sun. Every professional in the sport would be delighted to see a veteran such as Shaw become a world champion on his terms. Now all he has to do is win.

I have been thinking a great deal about the players of 2003 and this brave group of 2007. I could not have asked for more four years ago and I am sure that Brian feels the same way about his team. This present group should have been treated better over the past four years. If they win the ultimate prize, it will again be in spite of the system. Nothing has changed there.

My thoughts are with them every step of the way and I just hope we see a second winner’s medal around Vickery’s neck. A wet, rainy night would be another welcome gift from our friends in France. England to win by three points.