Boss Steve Borthwick forced his England squad to watch video nasties of Calcutta Cup collapses ahead of Saturday’s clash with Scotland.
Gregor Townsend’s side arrive at Twickenham this weekend on the back of four straight wins in the oldest fixture in Test rugby – which dates back to 1871.
England’s last win came in 2020, under Eddie Jones, and since then Finn Russell and co have had a hex over the Red Roses.
But back row Ben Earl revealed they are in the mood to get that monkey off the back after having repeats of past horror shows rammed down their throats by Borthwick and staff in camp.
Saracens’ Earl said: “We’ve watched some of that back, we’ve learnt some lessons. We’re not going to be short of motivation that’s for sure. They drop clips in anywhere.
“They’ve come with a very smart game plan, they’ve got world-class players in quite a few positions and we’ve been poor.
“It’s not a record we want. But it feels like a different team. It feels like a team that’s gone through a lot of hurt, a team that now has such an unbelievable trust compared to teams that might have played in the past. But it’s a record we have to change.
“It feels like a big week because this is a team that’s got the wood over us at the moment.”
Earl’s international career was nearly derailed shortly into Borthwick’s reign in 2023 when England lost 29-23 to the Scots at Twickenham before limping past Italy.
Earl was then sent packing by Borthwick and not seen until World Cup training camp before he emerged as England’s best player as they made it to the semi-finals of France 2023.
Earl, 27, added: “2023, Scotland at home was a big turning point for me – I had to learn a really harsh lesson. That was a time where the penny really dropped.
“I was unfit and I didn’t know what it took to become a top-class international rugby player, I didn’t know what it took to play under Steve. There were some harsh lessons but nothing I’d change.
“It’s not being unfit physiologically. It is learning that ‘I’m shattered, can I keep going?’ is a different mindset to ‘I’m shattered, I think I’ve emptied myself and got nothing left’, – you’ve always got more.
“Steve is a big believer in the back-rowers being the ones that run the furthest, work the hardest. You always think you do until you get thrown into the Colosseum. That was a day for me that I learnt the most.
“It’s something I’ve looked back on and felt almost grateful I had those lessons when I had them. But it’s never nice.”
