Jason Taylor admits the Wests Tigers' showdown with South Sydney is the game he wants to win more than any other.
Not because the Rabbitohs sacked him six years ago, but rather he views it as his side's litmus test.
Taylor will come up against the Rabbitohs for the first time since being dumped as coach in 2009 after he was involved in a Mad Monday altercation with David Fa'alogo.
He has returned to the NRL coaching ranks this year at the helm of the Tigers and has them off to a good start, winning their opening two matches.
However, Taylor is careful not to get carried away and says they will receive a test of their bona fides from the premiers and World Club champions at ANZ Stadium on Sunday.
Taylor this week dead-batted any questions about lingering feelings between himself and South Sydney.
But he said the Rabbitohs, fresh off an impressive win over the Sydney Roosters, were the competition benchmark which provided him with all the motivation he needed.
"They've proved they're the best side in the competition at the moment," Taylor said of Souths.
"The win last week was really strong along with the World Club Challenge and last year's premiership. There's no debating that one."
In the corresponding game last year, the Tigers ambushed the Rabbitohs with their pack doing a job on the Burgess brothers in a slugfest which was marred by several melees after Greg Inglis was taken from the field with a concussion following a high shot from Tim Simona.
The Tigers seemingly handed the rest of the competition a blueprint on how to beat the Rabbitohs with that performance and several South Sydney players this week mentioned it was still playing on their mind.
"We've had two solid wins but this is the litmus test to see where we're at ... in my opinion George Burgess and Issac Luke in their first two games have been their best players, Taylor said.
"We're going to have to work really hard to control what they do."
MATCH STATS
* Three of the 24 matches between these two sides have gone to golden point, with the Rabbitohs winning them all.
* If the Rabbitohs get the win it will be just the third time they have started the season 3-0 since the early 1970s.
* The Rabbitohs are on a five-match winning streak and will be looking to win six straight for the first time since 2012.
* The Rabbitohs have scored 30 points or more in their past five matches and if they manage to do so against the Tigers, they will become just the fifth team in history to score 30 or more points in six straight matches.
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