Drive to thrive: how the Red Roses built an unstoppable maul

There are three certainties in modern life: death, taxes and English rolling maul tries at the women’s World Cup. For the victims ensnared by the giant white anaconda there can be no escape from the inevitable end game. It rarely takes long for another Red Rose forward to be driven over the line beneath a huge pile of limbs.

It has reached the point where England no longer need to attempt much else. Their modus operandi has been highly effective and none of their opponents has yet located an antidote. If Canada are to have any chance in Saturday’s semi-final they will have to withstand an irresistible force that has crushed almost everything in its path so far.

Whether or not it qualifies as exhilarating viewing depends on your nationality and definition of oval-shaped entertainment. What cannot be denied is the brutal technical excellence of the monster mauls, for which England’s forwards coach, Louis Deacon, deserves his share of the credit. The former men’s international lock has been in post for only 15 months but his impact has been clear enough.

For anyone familiar with the Leicester packs in which he played in the noughties there is also a definite sense of deja vu. For years the Tigers maul was equally unstoppable, with try poachers such as Neil Back at the rear to finish things off. “One of the things I wanted to instil is that an England set piece needs to be dominant and feared,” says Deacon, flatly. “The opposition need to be worried about certain aspects of what we do. That’s the way I’ve been brought up. Often it’s just about doing the fundamentals incredibly well.”

Some may see it as an unlikely marriage: the most macho of alpha male mindsets transplanted to an elite female sporting environment. What