England’s maul: The greatest weapon in women’s rugby

By Canadian Press on September 17, 2025.

LONDON (AP) — John Mitchell was up for the game.

The undefeated coach of steamrolling England was asked during the podcast For The Love Of Rugby to play word association about the five props in his Women’s Rugby World Cup squad.

Maud Muir: “Trips on her feet.”

Mackenzie Carson: “Fast.”

Kelsey Clifford: “Thinker.”

Hannah Botterman: “Funny.”

Sarah Bern: “Serious.”

To wrap up, he added, “They are the heartbeat of our team, the front row.”

They are also the heart of the greatest weapon in women’s rugby: the England maul.

Tries from mauls opened and closed the 69-7 win over the United States in the World Cup’s first game. Samoa and Australia yielded, and Scotland was powerless in the quarterfinals last weekend.

Since the 2022 World Cup, England has scored an average of 1.04 tries per game through mauls, according to statistician Opta. No other team comes close. England also strikes with unrivaled efficiency, from every five mauls on average.

If everything else is breaking down, the Red Roses revert to their tried and trusted maul try. It underpins the two longest winning streaks in international rugby. England has won 61 of its last 62 games since 2019, a streak broken only by New Zealand in the 2022 World Cup final.

Of England’s tournament-best 38 tries in the ongoing World Cup, 10 come from its five bulldozing props. Add the five tries by hookers Amy Cokayne and Lark Atkin-Davies and the front-rowers have made a typically outsized contribution.

Making hard look easy

Maul tries are awesome in a brutal way; grinding, faceless and almost unstoppable.

Props have faces, of course, and Clifford’s is the youngest among England’s at 23. She came off the bench against Australia and scored twice, then started against Scotland and scored twice more, including the opening try after twisting past four tacklers.

“She makes something hard look easy,” former England captain Katy Daley-McLean said on the BBC commentary.

Clifford has never lost with England and is particular about her pre-match routine, including a fake tan and washed hair.

There’s nothing artificial about Botterman. Tattooed for reasons sentimental and rebellious, she has shrugged off ADHD to carve a seven-year England career since her debut at 18.

She’s one of the team’s emotional sparkplugs: “Like, if a scrap’s needed I’ll have a scrap. I’ll get everyone ready for it,” she told For The Love Of Rugby.

She says she’s been practicing drop goals. “That would be insane if it happened (in a game). I love doing things that I’m not meant to do usually. Nine times out of 10 there’s three physios looking at me, like, ‘Don’t do that.’”

Botterman is in a relationship with flyhalf teammate Holly Aitchison. Also in a relationship are Carson and Bern.

“It’s a unique experience to be able to play with your partner at England, and it’s great,” Bern told Premier Women’s Rugby. “We both know the grueling stuff, the pressures, the sacrifices … and you have someone there to encourage you when you’re down.”

Carson made her international debut against England for Canada in 2018 and changed eligibility thanks to an English mother. She debuted for England in 2023 and an ankle injury in March threatened her selection for the World Cup. Without a match in four months, she was still picked by Mitchell.

“That drive to win a World Cup, and not just go to a World Cup, is what motivates me,” she told Talking Rugby Union.

Blacked out

Carson and Bern were friends for six years before they became an item. They have directly opposed each other in scrums for their clubs. Bern is pragmatic: She feels like a winner and a loser whatever the score.

Bern was a sevens back-rower who was converted to tighthead. In her first scrum at an England training camp she blacked out. “I thought, ‘This is awful!’ I stood up crying. Everyone was like, ‘Are you okay?’ And I said, ‘I can’t see!’ I blacked out.”

Bern was England’s youngest, at 20, at the 2017 World Cup. Technical curiosity and skill developed her into the tighthead pick in the paper World XV from 2021-23. Her comfort with ball in hand has netted 30 tries in 77 tests. She’s another outspoken advocate of body positivity and inclusivity.

“Sarah Bern, she’s a big role model for me,” Muir told the Rugby Journal. “She was probably the first of a new era of props where, yes, it is about the scrummaging, but you see the things that she does in open play, it’s crazy. She runs through people, her footwork, her change of direction is actually mad. I could only dream of having that.”

Muir was a promising cricketer but by 20 in 2021 she was playing rugby for England. She’s lost only once and admits to being clumsy.

“I’m always tripping over stuff. Everyone takes the piss out of me at training because I’m always on the floor. It’s weird because I’m so uncoordinated,” she adds, “but yet when I’ve got a rugby ball in my hands I’m kind of okay.”

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AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby

Foster Niumata, The Associated Press