'Part of our DNA' - inside the Red Roses' try-machine driving maul

Women's Rugby World Cup quarter-final: England v Scotland

Venue: Ashton Gate, Bristol Date: Sunday 14 September Kick-off: 16:00 BST

Coverage: Live connected BBC One, Sports Extra Two and BBC Sport website and app

If you are successful nan beforehand fewer rows of nan crowd, aliases listening intimately to nan referee's microphone, you tin perceive nan shout.

"Three metres to go, 2 metres to go, 1 metre..."

It is nan sound of England scrum-half Natasha Hunt search a rumbling wide of Red Roses forwards, giving them an estimated clip of presence to nan tryline.

It is nan countdown for 1 of England's astir reliable attacking launchpads - nan driven line-out.

In England's last World Cup warm-up against France, nan Red Roses silenced a buoyant crowd successful Mont-de-Marsan, crossing 4 times done nan catch-and-drive tactic.

It delivered nan first and last tries successful their tourney opener against nan United States, pinch Sadia Kabeya and Lark Atkin-Davies crossing.

Samoa and Australia besides succumbed to nan steamroller.

As England participate nan knockout stages pinch Sunday's quarter-final against Scotland, and matches get tighter, it is simply a limb they whitethorn scope for moreover much regularly.

In top-tier matches since nan past Women's Rugby World Cup, England person scored an mean of 1.04 tries a crippled via their driven maul, good clear of nan remainder of nan world.

They transverse nan statement erstwhile successful each 5 mauls, an ratio unmatched by anyone else.

"The girls are conscionable very bully astatine it," says England forwards coach Louis Deacon, pinch a spot of understatement.

Earlier this summer, football's Lionesses adopted a 'proper English' mindset, invoking nan qualities of conflict and resilience connected their measurement to European Championship glory.

Deacon and Sarah Hunter, a cardinal portion of nan England battalion until she retired successful March 2023 and now defence coach, judge location is thing akin successful England's driven line-out expertise.

"We're English, we emotion set-piece and those benignant of areas of nan game," said Deacon.

"It's superb that it's portion of our DNA," added Hunter.

"It's ever been a ace spot and I cognize really overmuch our group of forwards pridefulness themselves successful keeping it correct up there. They walk a batch of clip honing those good arts."

Hooker Atkin-Davies won nan first of her 71 caps much than a decade ago.

"I person scored rather a batch of tries disconnected nan backmost of a maul," she says.

"My first domiciled though, nan astir important thing, it to propulsion nan shot accurately [into nan first line-out].

"As a hooker you person rather a habitual process - you will spot I rotation nan shot a batch successful my hands earlier nan throw, that is portion of my process.

"Then I subordinate nan backmost of nan maul and, first and foremost, push arsenic difficult arsenic I can.

"Depending connected nan set-up of nan opposition, we mightiness beryllium looking to twist and find a weakness, but mostly it is astir making judge we are tight and going forward.

"The girls successful nan beforehand of nan maul do a batch of nan work, while astatine nan back, our assortment intends sometimes we person a flanker connected nan ball, sometimes a hooker."

Asked astir nan number of different variations for driven line-outs England person successful their arsenal, Deacon replies coyly "a lot".

His squad revealed 1 successful nan triumph complete nan United States. With 50 minutes gone and nan Red Roses 40-7 up, England beforehand jumper Zoe Aldcroft caught a line-out 8 metres retired from nan American line.

As nan USA braced themselves for a shove, Kabeya and 2nd statement Morweena Talling alternatively peeled information into nan constrictive blind-side channel, linking up pinch hooker Amy Cokayne, who went successful astatine nan corner.

Those instrumentality plays are essential. For England's spot can, conversely, besides beryllium a weakness.

Such is their guardant powerfulness and nan accustomed slickness of their line-out, that nan Red Roses person antecedently leaned connected nan line-out thrust excessively heavily.

In nan past play of nan erstwhile Rugby World Cup last successful 2022, England, trailing New Zealand by 3 points, had a line-out 5 metres retired from nan Black Ferns line.

Everyone successful Eden Park knew what was coming adjacent and Atkin-Davies' propulsion to Abbie Ward was disrupted to spark chaotic celebrations.

Since then, nether caller caput coach John Mitchell, England person attempted to adhd much dimensions. The dream is now they tin arsenic easy trim teams unfastened connected nan other wing, arsenic bust done nan beforehand door.

"In nan past it's astir apt an area that we astir apt went to excessively much," said Deacon.

"When we look backmost to nan past World Cup, group were questioning 'can England only play it 1 way?'

"There's a batch much variety successful our crippled now. I deliberation complete nan past 2 years aliases so, we've grown our game. We tin play much than 1 way, we tin play 4 different ways if we want to.

"You don't want to beryllium a one-trick pony, surely if you want to beryllium successful."

But England's catch-and-drive is still a try-conjuring marvel that is nan envy of nan remainder of nan world.