Match report Ireland match reaction Match photos

The world champions were outplayed as Girvan Dempsey scored a try and Ronan O'Gara kicked 14 points for Ireland.

"The best side won," said Woodward. "You can take losing, but when you play so badly it makes it even harder. I'm in charge so I take responsibility.

"We've lost, we've had a bad day, but I am not going to over-react to this."

England looked a shadow of the side that won the World Cup last November.

"We have got to move forward from this," said Woodward. "You hate losing, but you have just got to cop it, and we can put a line under the World Cup now."

England captain Lawrence Dallaglio admitted Ireland had been good value for their win.

"Ireland thoroughly deserved victory," he said. "I don't think we can have any complaints. The best team won.

It is not the standards you expect from an England team England captain Lawrence Dallaglio

"If you don't win at the set pieces - and we were very poor at the line-out - you don't stand a chance."

England were outplayed in the set pieces and continually conceded possession in the line-out.

"They really disrupted our line-out," said Dallaglio. "If you make as many mistakes as we did, it makes life very difficult.

"It is not the standards you expect from an England team."

England scored a solitary try through Matt Dawson, and spurned several other chances.

Wing Ben Cohen was ruled to have made a double movement when he went for the line in the first half, while Mark Regan grounded the ball early in the second half only to be forced into touch.

And Josh Lewsey and Will Greenwood failed to get to grips with the ball later on as it fell over the dead-ball line.

Dallaglio said: "We crossed the line twice but failed to get it down. We didn't get the chances on offer."