RUGBY legend Jason Robinson is warning Martin Johnson's England revolution will take time to bear fruit.

Former Union and League star Robinson and Johnson were team-mates when the Leicester colossus captained England to World Cup glory in 2003.

Now, having assumed the mantle of England supremo, expectation is high that Johnson can plot a similar revival in the Red Rose nation's fortunes, starting with tomorrow's opening Autumn international against the Pacific Islanders.

That clash is the precursor to the more testing business of successive Tests against Southern Hemisphere giants Australia, New Zealand and world champions South Africa.

But before the Twickenham faithful starting preparing their picnic hampers and uncorking the bottles of Bollinger in anticipation of a glorious new England era, former Sale Sharks captain Robbo sounded a wary note of caution.

"There will be great expectation on Martin from the England fans. Every single time that England take to the pitch, the fans expect a win - and rightly so," said Robinson.

"Martin knew the challenge ahead, and the schedule of matches before he took on the job but fans do need to be patient.

"This is a new team and a new start for England and the best thing the fans can do to support the team is be patient.

"The team needs experience of playing the big opposition and they need continuity which takes time. I am very excited about the forthcoming series. Just look at the schedule of games coming up - it's fantastic.

"Everyone is expecting the Pacific Islands match to be the weaker opposition but they will still be extremely physical and a tough team to start against. You just have to look at how strong the likes of Fiji and Tonga were in the Rugby World Cup this time last year and you know they will be big, physical and strong players.

"Australia, South Africa and New Zealand have such fantastic players - it's a mouth watering prospect to see the three teams in action in successive weeks. The challenge for Martin is huge. He will want to lay a platform for the team and knows that they need to put in a good performance."

JASON Robinson is a HSBC Lions ambassador. HSBC is the Principal Partner of the British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa.

ENGLAND: D Armitage (London Irish); P Sackey (Wasps), J Noon (Newcastle), R Flutey (Wasps), U Monye (Harlequins); D Cipriani (Wasps), D Care (Harlequins); A Sheridan (Sale Sharks), L Mears (Bath), M Stevens (Bath), S Borthwick (Saracens, capt), N Kennedy (London Irish), T Croft (Leicester), T Rees (Wasps), N Easter (Harlequins). Replacements: D Hartley (Northampton), P Vickery (Wasps), T Palmer (Wasps), J Haskell (Wasps), M Lipman (Bath), H Ellis (Leicester), T Flood (Leicester).

How do you think Johnson's England will perform? Have your say.

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