Lewsey: Missing the final is like a knife in my heart

The Wasps wing, whose stealth in snatching the only try against France made all the difference, will watch on Saturday night from the anonymity of the stand instead of joining the very few privileged enough to have started in two global deciders.

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Crying shame: Lewsey fights to hold back the tears after learning that a hamstring injury has ruled him out of the World Cup Final

A torn hamstring gave England no option but to rule him out and summon Nick Abendanon from Bath as emergency cover. It left Lewsey shaking his head at the cruel timing of an injury which has prevented him from playing for the team but not from being a team player.

'Missing the Final is like having a knife through my heart,' he said. 'To have come this far and been this close, to have come through so many testing and trying times is devastating but this is no time for self-pity. You set goals and sometimes, through no fault of your own, you cannot achieve them.

'We started way back on June 24 in old military fatigues with the Royal Marines and I'm certainly not going home yet. All I care about is an England win. I don't care how or why — all that matters is England beating South Africa.

'Let's be honest, nobody outside the staunchest fan would have bet on England getting to the Final. It was quite nice being written off because it put us in the luxurious position where nobody expected anything.

'We've had four good wins but South Africa are smoking. They are favourites, deservedly so. They stuffed us twice last summer and they saw off a very good Argentine side quite comfortably. They will fancy their chances but you write England off at your peril.'

Lewsey, dropped towards the end of the Six Nations earlier this year, knows he could not have done more to get England into the decider after fighting his way back into the team.

He was also in no mood to apologise for patting Damien Traille on the head after exploiting the France full back's blunder to score the ultimately decisive try in the second minute.

'It was a pretty emotional start to the game and I was pretty pumped up,' he said. 'There was a lot of sledging and it was a bit of banter, that's all. Damien Traille is a world-class player but there was far more to the game than that. We all have a thick enough skin to take that.

'We knew we had to silence the French crowd by making a good start. Having been around with Andy Gomarsall for many years and knowing our games inside out, I told him the kick was on and he drilled it over the top.'

Lewsey's hamstring tore just before half-time. He said: 'I was coming on the switch when I started to power through on the right foot and felt it go. I knew I'd done it straight away but I can look myself in the mirror and know I've given everything.

'As Phil Vickery said in his speech before the Australia game: "Promise yourselves one thing — that, whatever happens, we don't go home with any regrets about this game". I hope we've made people proud at home. We have not finished yet.'

Lewsey's blow prevents him taking his place alongside Australia's John Eales, Tim Horan, George Gregan and Stephen Larkham and New Zealand's Sean Fitzpatrick as the only players to start two finals.

Three Englishmen — Jason Robinson, Jonny Wilkinson and Vickery — are due to join them, along with South Africa prop Os du Randt.