England are well resourced, but time and money are finite. Locke can’t afford to waste either on an innovation that fails to deliver.
He estimated that he has reviewed close to 60 different pieces of technology over the past two years and put only five or six to use.
“There are so many start-ups and new technology firms, it would be easy to be almost hoodwinked by the latest flashy gadgets,” said Locke.
“Our job is to make sure that whatever we look to implement is valid in terms of the research that it works, it’s cost efficient, and, most importantly, it’s going to have an impact and help answer a performance question.”
England’s next match poses an obvious puzzle. On Saturday, they play South Africa at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, 1,724 metres above sea level. At that altitude, the air has a weaker concentration of oxygen. Fail to prepare, prepare to flail and wheeze in the final quarter.
But it is tricky to acclimatise in south-west London.
So, after weighing up scientific literature and the realities of how much time they had with players, Locke and England’s coaches hooked them up to hypoxic masks, which recreate conditions at altitude of more than 3,000m, for intensive stationary bike sessions.
It should result in increased aerobic capacity and resilience when they face the four-time world champions on Saturday.
More general skills are also sharpened on the cutting edge.
Quarterbacks in American football’s NFL are trained to recognise defensive patterns and open space, using a headset or big screen to show them the start of a play from their own point of view. , externalThe screen will blank and they will have to identify where the attacking opportunity is opening up.
England’s decision-makers now use the same technology, with the speed of the footage cranked up and the time to act trimmed back to place them under increasing pressure.
As well as taking note from across the Atlantic, England have looked at other industries.
Training is now filmed by drones to give teams the best view of their overall shape and potential weak points.
