England lost a thrilling match in France but have proved they can compete with the best sides in the world, says head coach Steve Borthwick.
France won 33-31 thanks to a late Thomas Ramos penalty as England finished third in the Six Nations.
The narrow defeat came after England beat Six Nations champions Ireland at Twickenham last weekend.
“I am proud, but disappointed we didn’t get the win,” Borthwick told BBC 5 Live.
“We have shown in the last two weeks we are competing with the top four teams again.
“We don’t want to just compete, we want to win. It’s a step in the right direction.”
During the opening three rounds of the Six Nations, Borthwick’s side only scored six tries and struggled for consistent cohesiveness in attack.
However, seven tries against Ireland and France, who are ranked two and four in the world, and finished first and second in the Six Nations, shows progress in attack.
Centre Ollie Lawrence scored either side of the break to hand England the advantage in Lyon before tries from Marcus Smith and Tommy Freeman looked to have sealed victory.
However, Ramos struck in the final moments to deny England second place in the standings.
“I am really disappointed for the players, they worked so hard, and for the supporters who were magnificent,” Borthwick added.
“I am immensely proud, you can see how the shirt is getting lighter.
“Sometimes you have to stay in the fight and we saw that. If we had one more opportunity we could have got that score.”
