LONG READ Mick Cleary: 'England are back among the heavyweights.'

Silence. The Sound of Silence. Better even than the strains of Swing Low that eventually echoed round the stadium. Better even than the slight satisfied smile that broke across the face of deadpan Steve Borthwick. England can now take fully-merited hope for what lies ahead over the next two years as they build towards the World Cup in Australia. They began this championship as unreliable scufflers, serial losers over a period of time. They end it as genuine contenders. That is how far they have travelled.

And if there is one thing that they can take from this overwhelming victory, squirrel it away as a touchstone for the future, it should be the sound of the Principality crowd after ten minutes. There wasn’t one. Stunned silence. England had pledged to be bold and decisive, to play big, to quieten the crowd. They did that. And they have every right to never forget that.

After all the froth and fury of the build-up, imagined upsets, mythic repelling of English invaders, there was just the reality. And the reality is that England have finally found a true sense of themselves. They no longer need to talk themselves up, no longer need to persuade those on the outside that they really can give it a crack and not just behind closed doors in training. The scrutiny was intense but it was valid. They have been second best on the scoreboard too often. They have proven themselves.

Whoa! Whoa a minute! Can we really go as hard as this? Weren’t Wales simply dreadful, an unreliable barometer?  Yes, but only if they hadn’t been put to the sword. England had Excalibur drawn from first whistle. They got what they deserved for being inept and flimsy. We can’t have it both ways. We can’t write one minute that home advantage matters, that the Principality is a cauldron, the most hostile venue in the world when England are in town and then downplay that phenomenon when it is reduced to a peep.

If there were a compare and contrast on the respective reports cards of England and Ireland after the final round of fixtures it would make for an interesting read. Ireland had been loud and proud in putting England in their place on the opening weekend, in control and on point, imposing their game on England. There looked to be a fair bit between the teams. And now? In Rome, Ireland were patchy and underwhelming, lucky in that Italy stuffed it up with crass ill-discipline. England, meanwhile, had been told to brace themselves for a furious Wales uprising, a defiance of the odds triggered by ancient enmity. Within ten minutes England had put the opposition in its place, drawing all the energy from the crowd and flattening the occasion.

Two squeaky wins, over France and Scotland, left room for doubt. England had been lucky, relying on the flaws of opponents to get the victory. Now, there is credibility where once there had been only possibility.

Martin Johnson urged his men to do a similar job on the locals as he stood in the Millennium Stadium tunnel prior to the game in 2001. They did, posting their own record score that day.  That side, of course, was well under way on their to climbing the summit that was reached in Sydney two and a half years later. Borthwick’s team have a long, long  way to go yet before they can claim such status. And that is a good thing.

What they have done is put themselves into the conversation. Two squeaky wins, over France and Scotland, left room for doubt. England had been lucky, relying on the flaws of opponents to get the victory. Now, there is credibility where once there had been only possibility. Now there is conviction in their play rather than vague promises. Now they have delivered, gone from drawing board sketches to firm foundations.

Of course their last two fixtures were against the weakest teams in the championship. But England have often faffed and faltered in those situations. There was no such uncertainty on show at the Principality. It was the sort of merciless rugby that vintage All Black teams used to play: knowing what you are about and imposing yourself on the opposition, on the occasion, on the ref, the weather, whatever the hell you like. That’s where England have got to. They have discovered themselves in this championship. And that shell-shocked reaction from the Welsh crowd after told you that.

England are in a good place. It would have taken a Bob Beamonesque leap of the imagination to have considered being able to write that as the final whistle sounded at the Aviva in early February. Two late England tries had given the scoreboard an underserved rattle to 27-22. Yet here we are. It was not just the ten tries that England scored against Wales (who were so hapless and overpowered that even Jac Morgan was reduced to a hag-worn shadow of his real self), it was the manner in which they went about their business.

England have suffered to get to this point, from the slings and arrows of fortune, outrageous or otherwise. They came to realise that there was no point bleating about the narrowness of their losses to New Zealand and the like. They had to put it right themselves.

That’s what New Zealand sides have long had. France have shown it. Ireland, too, in a different way as they rose to the top. And we all know what South Africa are like – the ‘Boks are the Boks, steadfast and true, no matter the circumstances. All champion-aspiring teams need it, that inner sense of calm and purpose, Zen-like. Nothing should faze them, nothing should knock them out of their stride, nothing should ever cause a crease of worry that they won’t somehow get across the line.

England had that on Saturday. It remains to be seen whether it remains that way. This is just a starting point, a pretty good one to be fair. Where has it come from? Well, from the pain of defeat. The sting of criticism. From questioning and debate. From the boos up in the Twickenham stands. England have suffered to get to this point, from the slings and arrows of fortune, outrageous or otherwise. They came to realise that there was no point bleating about the narrowness of their losses to New Zealand and the like. They had to put it right themselves.

The switch of captaincy was an inspired move. It showed that England had to do something different. Losing wasn’t Jamie George’s fault. But change was an illustration of Borthwick’s desire to try to find an answer, to refuse to let the drift continue. Borthwick has long been a master of detail. In this Championship he has proved to be the master of the grand gesture. George to Itoje worked, galvanising the Saracens’ hooker in the process. Itoje has grown in stature throughout, enough to make talk of him as a Lions captain a hot topic of discussion. That is now up for grabs where it once was a one-horse race.

So too on the bold call to shuffle the Smiths, Fin in the 10 shirt with Marcus at the rear. Eliot Daly restored to the colours. Tommy Freeman at outside centre.  Ben Curry – what a presence. How can Andy Farrell not take both of them on the Lions tour?

England have options in the backrow that would be the envy of any other team in the world. There is an addition to that roster now in the two-try shape of 20 year-old Henry Pollock. The Coming Thing has finally arrived.

The England forward pack now has an air of solidity about it, not yet perhaps one of total menace although it had far too much physicality and thrust for Wales, monstering them at the breakdown. The scrum has cost England at various times in recent years but Ellis Genge and Will Stuart finish the Six Nations as the cornerstone of an impressive unit. Both should travel to Australia.

England are still stretched as regards the depth of their second-row resources although Harlequins’ back-row forward, Chandler Cunningham-South, did a fabulous job in stepping up to the plate when Ollie Chessum was forced off.

England have options in the backrow that would be the envy of any other team in the world. There is an addition to that roster now in the two-try shape of 20 year-old Henry Pollock. The Coming Thing has finally arrived.

England have an ideal summer tour ahead to Argentina, a testing ground of the highest order but which presents Borthwick with an opportunity to blood more players from the promising under 20 ranks.

Scotland’s spirited approach at the Stade de France briefly raised the prospect of an impromptu Six Nations trophy presentation having to be made in Cardiff rather than in Paris. Plausible as that briefly was it would have not been deserved. England have plenty still to prove but they needed a statement performance to prove that their potential was genuine.  And they delivered.

If this had been a boxing match, the referee would have stepped in to spare Wales further punishment. England are back among the heavyweights.