"Record on the Line" - Head to Head: Scotland vs England - 2024 Six Nations

Throughout the 152 years of rugby rivalry, the two nations have played each other a total of 141 times. The two illustrious rivals have met on the rugby pitch almost every year since their first battle in 1871, with the exceptions of the First and Second World Wars keeping them apart. Throughout the years, England have secured the win 76 times, whilst Scotland's aura as underdogs has seem them battle for the victory on 46 occasions.

There has been 19 draws between the two nations, with the fixture last ending in a stalemate in the unforgettable 38-38 thriller during the 2019 Six Nations. The Calcutta Cup is an iconic symbol of the Anglo-Scottish sporting rivalry, and was introduced for the ninth meeting between the two nations back in 1879. Currently, Scotland hold the fabled trophy, and have done since winning it at Twickenham in 2021. History hangs in the balance ahead of this Saturday's match, as should Scotland win their fourth consecutive match against England, they will match their record streak of victories against the old enemy that dates back to 1893 to 1896.

England's best run of form against Scotland is 10 consecutive wins, which took place between 1991 and 1999. The run of matches includes nine meetings in the old Five Nations Championship, and the iconic 1991 Rugby World Cup Semi-Final at Murrayfield, which saw England edge a 9-6 victory in the famous rugby cauldron. So, ahead of tomorrow's exciting reunion between rugby's most historic rivals, here is our head to head for Scotland and England.

First Meeting: Scotland 1-0 England - Exhibition Test Match

27th March 1871, Raeburn's Place, Edinburgh

The match that started it all. The inaugural encounter between Scotland and England took place when Queen Victoria sat upon the throne. As the score-line suggests, this match did not take place under the recognised rugby laws that we are accustomed to today, instead the only way to score a point for your team was to successfully convert a try.

Taking place north of the border in Raeburn’s Place, Edinburgh, little over 4,000 spectators attended this match. In what would today have finished 7-5 to Scotland, both sides scored a try, yet it was William Cross who slotted the monumental conversion for Scotland’s victory. Angus Buchannan, a dual-code player who also starred for the nation’s cricket team, has the accolade of scoring the first ever try in an international test match. The return fixture the following year saw England record their first win, and such a rivalry was then born.

Rewind the clock 12 months, and the most recent meeting between England and Scotland had recently taken place. Kicking off each side's 2023 Six Nations campaigns, Scotland spoiled the party for Steve Borthwick's first match in charge as England head coach. The opening round match is best remembered for Duhan van der Merwe's incredible solo try, that has had a replay resurgence in the recent Netflix documentary 'Full Contact'.

Van der Merwe had a starring role in this fixture, as he powered over for two tries against the resolved English opposition. Scotland added their first try of the match through Huw Jones, before Max Malins' retaliation score levelled the playing field after the first 25 minutes. The scoreboard continued to tick over as Malins added his second and Ellis Genge powered over for England. A second half Scottish surge saw Ben White nip over for a try, van der Merwe secure his brace, and the astute kicking of Finn Russell wrap up the win.

England most emphatic victory up in Edinburgh, was witnessed some 22 years ago in the 2002 Six Nations Championship. Despite not being the most high-scoring match-up the two sides have ever put on, the fixture was certainly the most convincing victory England had achieved in the hallowed grounds of Murrayfield. The win came in the midst of a five year period of English dominance, that stretched from 2001 to 2005. Sir Clive Woodward's men obtained the crown of 2003 Rugby World Cup winners in the process, which highlighted this 'golden era' of England, much to the chagrin of the Scots.

England finished the 2002 Six Nations as runners-up to France, yet were able to obtain the Triple Crown with wins against Wales, Ireland and this notable Scottish drubbing. Coming in the opening round of the tournament, England started off the scoring after just seven minutes, with Jason Robinson going over for a try. Robinson completed his brace after 12 minutes, before Mike Tindall and Ben Cohen also got onto the scoresheet. The astute kicking of Jonny Wilkinson and Charlie Hodgson added to the unobtainable lead, with the record setting deficit of victory still standing to this day.

Scotland's record win margin against England goes one better, as the 27-point deficit set in 1986 just eclipses the aforementioned 26-point win which England achieved in 2002. Scotland and England were close contenders throughout the 1980s, as the decade witnessed Five England wins, three Scotland wins and two draws. However, this fixture was anything from close, as the Scots ran out one way traffic over the deflated visitors, much to the delight of the capacity Murrayfield crowd.

England contributions to the score-line came from Chris Andrews' two penalties, which merely made a dent on the triumphant tartan. Wing Matt Duncan began Scotland's try-scoring, before Scott Hastings and John Rutherford followed suit over the whitewash. Despite the fine efforts of Scott Hastings to grab a try, it was the pinpoint kicking of his brother Gavin that stole the show. The legendary fullback slotted 24 points from the boot, in the form of the three conversions and an additional five penalties.

Despite the unbelievable 38-38 draw witnessed in 2019, the classic comeback at Twickenham is not the highest scoring fixture that England and Scotland have put on. For that match, we rewind two years before the second half that silenced HQ, in what was a jubilant day of celebration in South West London. England's emphatic 61-21 win against their British Isle rivals stands as their co-record margin of victory, with their 40-point win equalising their efforts of 2001, that recorded a 43-3 win at Twickenham.

Coming in the penultimate round on England's road to retaining the Six Nations title, Eddie Jones' side wasted no time to get the scoreboard up and running. Jonathan Joseph scored his first try after just two minutes, and had his hat-trick wrapped up just 40 minutes later. Additional tries from Anthony Watson, Billy Vunipola and a brace from Danny Care, build a stunning lead for Owen Farrell to add the extras. Scotland retaliated through three tries, yet despite the best efforts of Gordon Reid, and Huw Jones' double, the damage was more than done in a memorable Six Nations test match.