Martin Johnson's demeanour is an obvious barometer of the national side's fortunes and was in excellent spirits after England beat Italy 59-13.
England were in scintillating form on Saturday as they went over for eight tries that left the former captain pleased with how his team played.
"Yes, we could have scored more but I'm not unhappy," beamed Johnson.
"In fact, I'm very pleased with many aspects of the day; the tempo of the half backs was superb and that allowed everything to come together, bouncing the big men off them and using the predators like (Chris) Ashton to run their lines."
"We knew execution is all against Italy, execute poorly and they'll spoil your game. We wanted to keep the ball away from their spoiling game and attack deep to wide, which is exactly what we did."
Despite Ashton being an obvious choice for man-of-the-match, those half backs, Flood and Youngs, were the real key to orchestrating the England performance, Flood playing as flat as flat can be, and Youngs providing a service of accuracy, pace and decision.
"Italy were outstanding last week, and we expected a much closer game," explained Flood.
"But with the pace and tempo we've injected into our game now, we knew we were capable of a big score. There's a different mood in the camp this season compared to this time last year. We're driving each other hard to play a style of rugby that we want to play, and we're very honest with each other and ruthless in our criticism. We wanted to play right on the gain line today, and bring everyone onto the ball at pace and with Ben Young's speed at the base, we're now able to do that."
Youngs, enjoying a fantastic first full season in international rugby added: "The key is having freedom to define our own style. The rules this season challenge you to keep the ball in hand and that's exactly what we're trying to do. When you have predators like Ashy begging for the ball, you know you're in a good place as a team. We're never sure quite what he's thinking, or even if he thinks at all, but what a predator and it makes my life easy as a scrum half when I have so many options around me"
Captain Mike Tindall, a popular try scorer today, was keen to add a sense of perspective: "The next game will be totally different. Yes, we've had a great day today, but we know if we kick as badly as we did at times today, that France have the backs to tear us to ribbons."
"We'll host France knowing we need to play a tighter and more disciplined game, but key to that is having the confidence to run the ball at the right times, and kick accurately when the game dictates that. It's about blending what we did today with what we did at times in the autumn. Above all, whatever we do, accuracy is all and that's exactly what's starting to emerge."
On the flip side, a sombre Italian skipper, Sergio Parisse was open and blunt as to his assessment of the day.
"Today's only positive is that we're still fit and able to play another game of rugby in two weeks. There is nothing to take from today's performance, nothing at all," he said.
"We were poor in many aspects, poor beyond comprehension. In particular I think our mental approach was weak and that hurts me as a proud man and captain. Our line out was naïve- the calls were badly chosen, the throwing was inaccurate and we lost eight on our own throw as a result. We made it easy for England.
"It is really one of my worst days in an Italian shirt and I am very disappointed in the way we played and the lack of spirit we showed."
Man-of-the-Match and four-try hero Ashton's mood however, was rather more upbeat.
"Credit to a good team and a great performance. All I do is finish the work off, and when you have tempo like that and players like Floody and Youngs challenging the gain line it makes my life very easy," he said.
"There's a huge momentum at the moment and we're bouncing off each other. I'm just lucky that I'm on the end of some great plays and get the headlines for finishing off the work of others."
Despite his manager suggesting it's time to cut out the celebrations, Ashton remains nonplussed by the suggestion, managing two trademark swallow dives in two of his four tries.
"Yes, Johnno has asked me to cut it out, but I really don't think about it. It kind of just happens. He has told me however, that I need to consider this may be my last press conference!" he explained.
"Yes, Ashy and I had words in the week," confirmed a grinning Johnson.
"After the second dive, although we had no subs left, I still nearly put his number up and pulled him off anyway! He's certainly going to have a very interesting and premature end to his international career if he continues to push his luck!"
Maybe so, but with vintage rugby like today, and the inspiring contributions from the young stars of English rugby, many an England fan, and many within the camp itself, will hope that 'luck' continues for some time to come.
By James While at Twickenham
