Jack Dempsey hopes to “rectify” his World Cup fortunes with Scotland in France this autumn.
The Glasgow Warriors flanker, 29, was part of Australia’s 2019 squad but has since switched allegiance.
Scotland open against South Africa on 10 September and will also face Ireland, Romania and Tonga. Gregor Townsend’s side will prepare with Tests against Italy, France and Georgia.
“It was disappointing in that campaign in 2019 with Australia,” Dempsey said.
“We got pretty beaten up by England in the quarter-finals and sent home quickly as it was a disappointing result.
“As a competitor and a professional, it’s something you build towards since you were 12 or 13 years old and you look at a World Cup every four years to watch with your family.
“It’s the pinnacle of the sport, so you build yourself up as a professional and that is the aim.”
Dempsey says that “to get that far and fall short”, he is relishing the chance “to get a second crack”.
“It’s something I want to rectify,” he said. “That’s what drives me. To be successful once and look back when you are 40, 50, 60 years old to have fond memories.”
‘I felt drained after 10-month slog’
Dempsey helped Warriors reach last season’s European Challenge Cup final, where they lost 43-19 to Toulon.
“Me, personally, I felt really drained,” Dempsey said of his campaign. “It’s probably one of the first times in my career it was just like a 10-month slog.
“Europe was going well and then we just petered out. We just failed to deliver. The team that turned up wasn’t what we were all year.
“It was hard to take, I’m not going to lie. You are used to having five weeks to get over that and rebuild with a pre-season, but now it’s just a couple of weeks off and straight back into training.
“Its tough. It’s one of the toughest things I’ve experienced. The Scotland coaches have done a really good job of understanding that. They haven’t just thrown us into body-on-body contact or just smashing us into each other.
“We are training real hard in terms of running metres and getting fit, but we are being smart around our recovery at this time of year.”
