England needed to dig deep and find a way to beat a spirited Fiji side in their World Cup quarterfinal on Sunday and after a fifth successive victory, coach Steve Borthwick had simple message: "Don’t write us off".

England were in control in Marseille as they led 24-10 past the hour-mark, but two quick tries from the Pacific Islanders levelled the scores and swung the momentum in the latter's favour.

The cool head of captain Owen Farrell put England back on top with a drop-goal and a penalty in a 30-24 win that set up a semifinal against hosts France or South Africa in Paris.

After coming into the tournament with five defeats in six games, it has been a quick turnaround in fortunes for Borthwick.

"These (England) players were written off," he said. "A lot of people said we wouldn’t get out of the pool. We got out of the pool, now we got out of the quarterfinal.

"I am sure we will be written off again, but these players rise to the occasion."

Borthwick always believed his team would be ready for the World Cup despite the difficult build-up.

"I don’t care what other people think about us, I only care about the team. I am privileged to work with a fantastic group of players," he said.

"I said the team would be ready and they were. They have grown through the tournament. Not so long ago we might not have come back to win this game, but this team did. I see a composure in them."

Farrell kicked 20 points and believes the result is a big step forward having come through a tight contest.

"It was what we expected. They are a tough, tough team that can turn it on in the blink of an eye," he said. "We always knew Fiji were going to have some good patches.

"We were brilliant in those moments, we managed to wrestle our way back into the game and into the right parts of the field to take our chances. This team is finding ways to win."

Farrell said England would relish the semifinal with renewed belief.

"We will prepare the way we have been over the past six weeks, we will enjoy going into a big week and we will attack it (the challenge)," he said.