GEORGE Ford came through a first international start for England with flying colours last weekend, putting his body on the line to orchestrate a victory over Samoa.

But the ice-cool fly-half insists both he and his teammates will have to find answers to a host of different questions a revitalised Australia will pose if they are to end their year on a high.

The 21-year-old showed just why Stuart Lancaster has such faith in his ability as he helped the Red Rose end a run of five straight defeats with a 28-9 win over the Pacific Islanders at Twickenham last Saturday.

And having retained the number 10 jersey – with Owen Farrell dropping out of the starting XV altogether – pressure will be on Ford’s young shoulders to step up against the Wallabies.

But the Bath star believes the occasion will only bring the best out of him as he looks to lay down a marker ahead of an engrossing year of rugby to come.

“It means a lot [to retain the No.10 jersey], I’m really excited for the game on Saturday and really happy to be starting again – it’s always special when you go out there and start for England,” he said.

“The first international game, it was great to be out there in front of 80,000 people at Twickenham in that arena.

“It was a step up but you’re learning all the time, you never stop learning so you take it all in your stride and keep getting better.

"Every opportunity you get for your country is a great one to lay your marker down. You can’t let these games slip, you have to make the most of them and go out there and play as well as you can.

“It’s a good test for us all this week. Australia are a brilliant team with some world class players.

“Coming off the back of the win against Samoa we’re under no illusions it’s going to be a step up in individually and as a team.”

Saturday will be the first meeting between the two sides since November of last year – where England triumphed 20-13 – but will also stand as the final chance to eye one another up before next year’s World Cup.

But Ford insists his side are only thinking of ending their autumn on a positive note with the result unlikely to give either side an advantage when they meet in the 2015 World Cup.

“We take each day and week as it comes otherwise if you get too far ahead of yourselves you get caught out,” he added.

“If we think about it as individuals we probably won’t get the team performance that we want out there. It’s all been about stepping us as a team and getting them combinations.

“We’re seeing this as the last game of the autumn series and want to end on a high and take some momentum into the next campaign.”

Samsung are the Official Consumer Electronics & Smartphone Partner of the England Rugby Team. For more information, offers and competitions visit www.facebook.com/SamsungSport or follow us on Twitter @SamsungSport

SEE MORE FROM GEORGE FORD IN THIS VIDEO