England's only men to dominate the rugby world will meet London tonight, where talk will quickly turn to how the team can conquer the globe again.
The class of 2003 will reunite at the Hammersmith Apollo, coming together for just the second time since lifting the Webb Ellis Cup.
England's solitary men's Rugby World Cup win was built on complete and utter global domination.
When Jonny Wilkinson's drop-goal drove England to World Cup glory in Australia two decades ago to this very day, the Red Rose side had spent three years vanquishing all-comers.
Sir Clive Woodward's quest to turn England into world champions began in 1997, but only ratcheted up from 2000 until that 20-17 extra-time triumph over hosts Australia in Sydney.
England have reached two men's finals since, losing both. Their one win in four showpiece battles remains a frustrating return for the world's richest union.
The champions of 2003 would dearly love another group of England stars to experience the elation of ruling the world.
Lawrence Dallaglio believes only radical and brave changes will return England to the top of the tree.
"There's some smart thinking that needs to be done," Dallaglio told Standard Sport. "I think we need to make some important moves across the sport's landscape in England."
An era of global dominance must begin and end with board-level vision from the RFU, where consistency will be crucial. English rugby's ruling body will bring in hybrid contracts next season, topping up club deals for 25 players, adding direct salary funding to individual players for the first time.
To say carte blanche that you can't pick a player who is playing abroad needs to be rethought
That major step towards central contracts will hand the RFU more influence over England's players than ever before.
This is a big opportunity for England to look at setting up a semi-formal sabbatical program. "If I were the RFU and Saracens, you might get together and find a way of striking a deal where Maro Itoje goes to Japan for a year," said Dallaglio. "Just to say carte blanche that you can't pick a player who's playing abroad needs to be rethought.
"That rule was made when the French clubs were not so aligned with their Test set-up as in England, but that has changed. I'd hate to see players picking club over country for financial reasons."
RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney has come under fire for many and varied issues at Twickenham across a testing 18 months. But the former British Olympic Association boss has recently turned the RFU tiller in a positive direction.
Sweeney's acceptance that previous gutting of progressive age-group coaches caused untold damage to player development underscores a revitalised youth set-up. The gap between the RFU board and Test coaching set-up has been too wide in recent times, too, and that must now tighten up.
England suffered greatly from a lack of board-level planning for what would happen after winning the 2003 World Cup. Woodward threw everything at winning, and such singularity of focus and purpose required others to build behind the scenes in the longer-term, which proved sadly lacking.
Conor O'Shea now holds the crucial RFU role of executive director of professional rugby. The former Harlequins coach is the man charged with bridging any gaps between boardroom and coaching box.
O'Shea and Sweeney have several urgent issues to resolve, however, which could shape England's chances for years to come. On the pitch, England must find the next generation of power-scrummaging props, add another creative midfield element and maximise former London Irish wing Henry Arundell's natural attacking talent.
Martin Johnson captained England to 2003 glory, and the former Leicester lock expects a transitional phase ahead.
"We need our young players to come in and very quickly understand what Test rugby is," Johnson told the Lawrence Dallaglio Evening Standard Rugby Podcast.
"It's physical, it's quick. You can't just fling the ball out the back of your hand and make people look good, like you might be able to in the Premiership. You have to be able to operate smartly in the toughest of situations."
England are the only men's World Cup winners to have lifted the Webb Ellis Cup just once. Of the five nations to have reached a final, only winless France have a worse record.
South Africa have won all of their four finals — half of the eight tournaments in which they have participated.
How the class of 2003 would love to reunite for a 25th anniversary in 2028 flanked by a second group of England World Cup winners.
