RUGBY UNION: Stuart Lancaster quits as England coach

Stuart Lancaster has left his post as England coach following the team's early exit from the World Cup.

England became the first host nation to be eliminated at the group stage when they lost matches to Wales and Australia in Pool A.

It was the first time an England side had failed to reach the knockout stages in their eight World Cup campaigns.

Lancaster, 46, was made permanent coach in 2012 and won 28 of his 46 games, but failed to win the Six Nations.

Lancaster released a statement through the RFU which said: “I am obviously extremely saddened to finish the way we did in this World Cup and to step down from the role.

"As I have always said, I ultimately accept and take responsibility for the team's performance and we have not delivered the results we all hoped for during this tournament. I did, however, want to take part in the review to ensure I understood the views of others before making a decision.

"The reality is that, while many aspects of the review were very positive, we didn’t achieve success on the field when it mattered and we all have to take responsibility for that but me especially as head coach.”

A statement from the RFU confirmed he had left his role with the decision made by mutual consent.

[WHO'S IN THE FRAME TO SUCCEED LANCASTER?]

It read: "The Rugby Football Union can confirm that Stuart Lancaster has, by mutual consent, stepped down as England Head Coach.

"The decision follows England’s recent Rugby World Cup campaign which saw the team knocked out of the tournament at the pool stages after defeats to Wales and Australia."