"We want to attack like no other team in the world attacks. We want to be flat and fast on teams and constantly at them."

In a joint interview he gave to the BBC with England and Leicester Tigers half-back partner George Ford, Ben Youngs spelled out the next stage of England’s development.

On taking Twickenham’s top job almost two years ago, Eddie Jones had been similarly forthright in his aim to cultivate a tactical identity. He wanted to use the raw materials at his disposal to reinforce the foundations that were confused at the end of Stuart Lancaster’s tenure.

Japan’s stunning victory over South Africa in September 2015 was masterminded by Jones, Steve Borthwick and Marc dal Maso - whom England have consulted recently to fine tune their scrum. It represented a triumph of intelligence, accuracy and mobility over power.

This short passage from that heady day in Brighton encapsulates how the Springboks were outmanoeuvred: