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Meninga wary of Poms' London threat: Scott

Matt Scott says Mal Meninga has been reminding his players not to under-estimate England on Sunday by using his first-hand experiences of losing in London.

Australia Head Coach Mal Meninga
Kangaroos' Matt Scott says Mal Meninga has been reminding his players not to under-estimate England. (AAP)

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Source: AAP


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Kangaroos prop Matt Scott says Mal Meninga has drummed in the dangers of under-estimating England by taking the team on a trip down memory lane.

Meninga, is the only man to play in four Ashes series in Great Britain and was skipper of the losing side at Wembley Stadium in 1990 and again four years later when the hosts played most of the match with 12 men after Shaun Edwards was sent off.

On both tours the Kangaroos fought back to win the series 2-1 but Scott said Meninga has warned his players to be wary of facing English players in their nation's capital ahead of Sunday's clash (0100 Monday AEDT) at the Olympic Stadium..

"We do play the Kiwis a lot but when you think about the traditional Test matches, they were against the Poms," Scott said.

"Mal was a part of a lot of them and has made clear how well they play over here and especially in London.

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"It's got the group really excited as it's going to be a tough, physical game."

Laurie Daley, Allan Langer, and Ricky Stuart were among the players who featured with Meninga in both the 19-12 defeat in 1990 and the 8-4 loss to the undermanned hosts in 1994 and Scott said the current coach still has vivid recollections of both games.

"He talked about the history of the two sides and some of the games he was a part of and the great Aussie teams getting beat by the Poms in London in particular," he said.

"He just wanted to reiterate what it meant to play Test footy and how good an opportunity it was for us on Sunday."

Meninga is keen to extend the Test calendar and there has been talk of a Great Britain side re-forming and playing in Australia.

It was something that almost happened after the 2012 season only for the players' call for a summer off to be granted by the NRL due to the Rugby League World Cup at the end of the 2013 campaign.

"I think it's good to have a year off from rep footy, especially after World Cups because it's such a big tournament," said Scott.

"There are different ways we can structure it and if there were a couple of Tests particularly at home, I'd love to play in a British Lions or Ashes type series.

"The NRL are looking at that and hopefully have a plan over the next 10 years because international footy is growing and getting stronger and hopefully I can play a few more Tests."


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