Brooke, who won 58 caps for New Zealand, said Clive Woodward's team surpasses the triple Grand Slam winning side captained by Will Carling in the early 1990's.

Carling led England to Five Nations glory in 1991, 1992 and again in 1995.

And although Clive Woodward's current charges have yet to repeat that feat, Brooke is in no doubt of the calibre of the new crop of players.

"This is the best England side in history," he told BBC Sport Online.

"The only side that comes close is Carling's team.

"But, I feel this squad is going to be very competitive in any tournament and any competition.

"They have more depth than Carling's team that's for sure - which in itself was a strong team right through."

England have notched up 18 consecutive victories at Twickenham and jumped to number one in the world rankings after their victories over New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

"The autumn Test series was very impressive from England's point of view," Brooke added.

"They didn't play a full strength Kiwi team but they repelled a massive amount of pressure to win the game.

"Against Australia they found themselves down - badly - and kept themselves calm to claw their way back into the game.

"And that's something the Aussies usually do to everyone else.

"Against the Boks they showed they could be physical. They've got it all, so if I was an England fan I'd be very happy indeed."