Yes, they may have boosted their morale to some degree by getting to within a solitary point of the Springboks last weekend but anybody who watched that game would surely agree the closeness of that result was due more to the inadequacies of the Boks than any significant improvement by their opposition. In short, both sides were ordinary, very much so.
New England coach Stuart Lancaster has apparently tried to instil a fresh culture and attacking mindset into his team but the evidence thus far is that he simply doesn't have the players to make his dream a reality.
It's a bit like Robbie Deans with the Aussies, even if he was the miracle worker some of us once thought he was, never was he going to be able to come up with a tight five of true international quality. Which meant in turn he was never going to achieve the results which his coaching qualities probably deserved.
How Lancaster will have his side approach this test against the ABs is perhaps the most intriguing question leading into the game.
Will he give his players full licence to attack or will he resort to the customary English tactic of keeping the ball close to the forwards, thereby boring the pants off the spectators but at least keeping the scoreline to within reasonable bounds.
The ABs would love nothing better than for England to take them on at the running game. The more movement there is the more the ABs will flourish as they have backs with the speed and flair to pierce any defensive structure. England doesn't. Even their much-touted centre Manu Tuilagi would struggle to make one of the top ITM Cup teams here. In days gone by - think Martin Johnson here - you would have given the Poms at least some chance of achieving a semblance of dominance up front because what their forwards lacked in skills they more than made up for through sheer physicality but it's hard to see them combating the AB pack in any sense now.
Sure, they will possibly go close to breaking even in the set pieces of scrum and lineout but, away from those areas, it should be all one-way traffic with the ABs calling the tune.
Suggesting any test between the so-called top-tier rugby nations will be won by more than 20 points is always a risky proposition but I'll be surprised if England gets away that lightly on this occasion.