England's Rugby World Cup-winning squad was honoured by the Queen at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday. Injured fly-half and new captain Jonny Wilkinson, veteran prop forward Jason Leonard and new coach Andy Robinson all received OBEs for services to rugby.
The rest of the 30-strong group of players were awarded MBEs.
World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward and former captain Martin Johnson both missed the ceremony due to prior engagements.
Wilkinson said: "I am very proud and honoured to be here and to be invited here as a team is really special.
"I had a really nice couple of minutes with the Queen and we were talking about the future for rugby. We also talked about my slight injury and how I just wanted to be back playing."
The 25-year-old Newcastle star added: "The boys were quite nervous and a little bit shaky.
"Some of them were saying they felt more comfortable going out in front of a crowd of 75,000 people, which I think shows the kind of respect that the Queen inspires."
Former captain Lawrence Dallaglio, who has retired from international rugby, said he felt tremendously proud to receive his MBE.
"It is a great day for the families and for all the squad, it is very exciting.
"The memories are still very vivid and fresh in the mind - everybody still talks about the World Cup," he said.
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