Maro Itoje insists England "are going places" despite enduring their worst Six Nations campaign, while head coach Steve Borthwick remains adamant he is the "right man" for the job.
England lost four games in the tournament for the first time to finish fifth in the table but the performance in their last-gasp loss to France was a far cry from the insipid displays against Scotland, Ireland and Italy.
England produced one of their best showings under Steve Borthwick - who now faces a Rugby Football Union (RFU) review - scoring seven tries at Stade de France. The last of those, a 77th-minute effort from Tommy Freeman, looked to have sealed a famous victory, only for Thomas Ramos to break English hearts with a last-gasp penalty.
It was cruel on England, who dominated for large spells during the first half and surged into a 10-point lead, but a 40th-minute penalty try - coupled with the sin-binning for Ellis Genge - proved costly.
"In sport you often don't want to go through the experiences we went through in the last few games but I truly believe we are going places," England captain Itoje told ITV.
"We had a tough couple of games and are disappointed to lose this one but it showed the spirit of this team.
"We will learn from our experiences and be better for them. We just need to attack the game as Test rugby is a tough sport. You have to be sharp from the off. We will take the lessons. Some big ones."
Borthwick is set to fight for his future at the RFU's review of the tournament, although England's stirring performance against France could have bought him some time.
Transformed from the side that collapsed in Rome, England's pack flexed their muscles for the first time in the tournament by dominating France up front, inspired by two-try Ollie Chessum, the relentless Ben Earl and props Genge and Joe Heyes.
Asked about his prospects, a defiant Borthwick said: "I believe I'm the right man to lead the team going forward."
He added: "I'm really proud of the way the players played, but ultimately we're gutted that we went into the tournament with such high expectations and aspirations and we've not been able to meet those targets," he said.
"It's been a painful tournament and we're all hurting. I know the supporters are hurting as well. We wanted to make sure they had wins to celebrate and we weren't able to give that.
"Everyone involved in the team cares so deeply, so the immediate reflection is one of huge disappointment.
"There's a sense of determination to make sure that this hurt makes the team stronger in the future."
England saw a 10-point lead reduced in first-half injury time when Ellis Genge was sin-binned for bringing down a maul with referee Nika Amashukeli also awarding a penalty try.
Borthwick will seek clarification with World Rugby, believing the decision to be harsh and he also questioned the officiating which meant England pressed an attack in the belief they had penalty advantage.
When that decision was overturned by the TMO and they turned the ball over, France pounced through Louis Bielle-Biarrey's fourth try in the 66th minute.
"I think some of the decisions are debatable. The decision against Henry Arundell at the start of the Scotland game in round two was confusing at best," Borthwick said.
"I thought that one against Ellis to give a penalty try - I don't follow it. I'll ask for it to be explained to me.
"For the scrum knock on, the players on the pitch were told it was a penalty advantage so they played in a certain manner knowing they had a penalty to go back to.
"Unfortunately, what happened in the background is the TMO changed it to a knock-on advantage. The players were unaware of it and France go down the other end and score a try.
"World Rugby needs to look at that kind of situation because you can't have the players playing with certain knowledge and then it being taken away from them."
Next up for England is a trip to Ellis Park, Johannesburg on July 4 to face world champions South Africa in their first game of the inaugural Nations Championship.
