Mike Tindall confident of strong England performance at Rugby World Cup

Mike Tindall believes Stuart Lancaster's faith in his rugby principles will stand England in good stead at the Rugby World Cup.

And the 75-cap international - who was part of the squad which won the 2003 tournament - feels the fact the backs division is becoming increasingly more established will be a key factor in their pursuit of the William Webb Ellis Cup this autumn.

England narrowly missed out on the Six Nations championship in March but displayed their full repertoire of attacking skills in a 73-12 win over the Barbarians at Twickenham last month.

While the quality of opposition in that match slightly dilutes the impact of such a vast win, Tindall has been impressed with the way the national side have executed Lancaster’s strategies and is confident they can enjoy a good World Cup.

“I’m really optimistic about how well they can do," Tindall told Sky Sports News HQ. "Even if you look at the Barbarians game, they showed you the options that are already there in the 51-man squad.

He (Stuart Lancaster) has been rigid in what he believes and he’s stuck to it. People have questioned him but he’s going to stick with that and I’m sure they’ll do really well.

"They attacked well in the Six Nations and they’ll probably kick themselves about the Scotland game with the amount of points they left out there.

"Then in the Ireland game, they’ve got to learn how to squeeze and tactically play a bit different.

"They’ve got two packs who can take on any pack in world rugby and now they seem to bet getting settled behind that.

"He (Stuart Lancaster) has been rigid in what he believes and he’s stuck to it. People have questioned him but he’s going to stick with that and I’m sure they’ll do really well."