Asking Scotland rugby players to review footage of last year's Calcutta Cup clash is an act of cruelty on a par with inviting them to sit in an ice bath and thrash themselves with birch twigs while listening to Celine Dion's Greatest Hits.

The tape of that game contains more self-inflicted pain than Fifty Shades of Grey and is not the sort of thing that any sensible fellow would ever volunteer upon himself.

Yet Matt Scott revealed yesterday that watching Scotland's 20-0 humbling at the hands of England 13 months ago had a galvanising effect on the squad, if only in the sense that revisiting this rugby Culloden had reminded them how awful they felt in its aftermath.

"The England game last year was horrible to look back on and we have watched clips this week," said Scott at the team's hotel in west London yesterday morning. "Personally, I took that defeat really badly, it was probably the worst one of my career. I remember the embarrassment of it all and it has been used as motivation this week."

But what went so badly wrong that day? On a technical level it would be easier to list the things that went right, which pretty much stopped at getting the players on the field at the right time and in correctly numbered shirts. After that, it was a catalogue of calamities for the Scots.

"There was a lack of structure to our attack," Scott offered. "We were all over the place in parts. There was poor execution of kicks, poor decision-making. It just looked really disjointed. Looking back it was a terrible performance."

So belated consolation for Scotland supporters, who now know that Scott enjoyed the experience almost as much as they did. Yet if the accusation at the time was that simply did not care enough, the Edinburgh centre is happy to put them right. In his view, they cared too much.

"I remember the boys being so fired up for that game and it's funny how we just completely went to pieces," he said. "Last year we had boys with tears in their eyes in the dressing room before the game.

"It was an emotionally charged affair, but it's a professional sport and it's about cool heads. We didn't play rugby at all so this weekend it's about drip feeding that passion.

"That's a big focus for us this week because there's a fine line and we certainly crossed it in the wrong way last year."

Until Thursdat morning, Scott had expected to be sitting on the bench for Scotland at Twickenham today, but that all changed when Alex Dunbar suffered his season-wrecking knee injury in the team's final training session at Murrayfield. Scott, then, was moved up the order, although he would have preferred to make the starting lineup in less cruel circumstances.

Scott said: "I am devastated for Alex and sent him a message straight after training saying I hoped it was good news but unfortunately it wasn't. I was gutted for him. It is strange how innocuously these injuries happen but that is the nature of the sport I am afraid."

And he should know. From his breakthrough first start, against Australia in June 2012, Scott was an automatic choice for Scotland, chosen for 15 games on the trot. However, the following year brought a sequence of frustrating injuries and false starts, during which time Dunbar and Mark Bennett established themselves as Scotland's first-choice midfield. Today, then, is Scott's chance to remind the sport why he was so highly rated in the first place.

Dunbar's misfortune aside, he has timed his run well. His performance in Edinburgh's 29-8 win against Treviso last weekend was his best in months. His two tries helped his side to collect a bonus point, but his bold attacking runs and solidity in defence also reassured national coach Vern Cotter that the 24-year-old law graduate was fit and firing again.

"I play so much better as a starter," said Scott, who was a replacement in the games against Wales and Italy. "Most rugby players will say it is harder to come off the bench and I am not used to it.

In most games I have played professionally, I have started and it is a tough situation. You don't know if you are coming on in the first minute or the 79th, so you are constantly on edge. You almost feel you are not up to speed when you go on. It is hard mentally and it is something I am not used to."

And so to Twickenham, where Scott played in the 38-18 loss to England two years ago. That extended a losing streak that stretches back to 1983, but Scott says the backdrop is more inspiring than daunting.

"We want to get a win for ourselves and for the nation - and where better to do it," he said. "I don't worry about our history at Twickenham. It's a massive opportunity to make history and I use that as motivation, which is a great tool We could write ourselves into the history books tomorrow."