Slipper has a score to settle
However, veteran Wallaby prop James Slipper has a score to settle when the Wallabies host England in a three-Test series this month.
The 'grudge' goes back six years, when England handed Slipper a brutal scrummaging lesson in his Test debut.
The Wallaby prop remembers vividly the dominance of the English scrum in his first Test match, in England's most recent visit to Australia in 2010.
Six years on from that, Slipper is Australia's most-capped Test prop and a Super Rugby captain, worlds away from that Wallabies rookie.
"I think I've come a [long] way [since then]," he told rugby.com.au.
"Obviously playing England, they're really known for their scrummaging.
"That first game we really got tested pretty strongly there and they really taught us a lesson."
The Wallabies started to eke out some set piece dominance on their rivals in a 33-13 World Cup win that knocked England out of the World Cup last year, with their scrum performance a pivotal part of that.
It's an improving area for the Wallabies and Slipper said they would need to continue to raise the bar, acutely aware of the development England have undergone since Eddie Jones took the reins.
"I think they've had a very strong scrum for many years," he said.
"They always base their game on their scrum. I thought they scrummed really well through the Six Nations.
"Last year we set up a great standard for our scrummaging so it's up to us to match that if not better it."
Source: rugby.com.au
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