A FULLY fit Cory Hill has his sights set on a return to action for Wales against England on Sunday, more than five months after the Dragons skipper’s try helped beat the old enemy in Cardiff.

The 24-times capped second row scored in February’s 21-13 Six Nations victory which took Wales to the Grand Slam – but Hill has bittersweet memories of the encounter.

He damaged his ankle as he powered over in the act of touching down, picking up an injury that meant he had to sit out the defeats of Scotland and Ireland.

Hill is back to full fitness after a gruelling training camp with Wales in Switzerland, and he is keen to make up for lost time in a World Cup warm-up match at Twickenham he knows will be full-on.

“It was a pretty special moment to score that try against England,” said Hill. “But it lasted for 30 seconds as I realised I’d done the injury.

“It will be nice to play England again, but there is a huge squad here and you’ve got to impress in training.”

He added: “We will be going full-on. They are Test matches and local derbies as well so there is a little bit more to add to it.

“Playing England is the biggest challenge we could have before the World Cup. We certainly won’t be under-cooked.

“We’ve still got our 14-game streak and the boys want to keep that going.

“You want to win every time you put that red jersey on. We have spoken about it.

"England games are never easy, but it’s good preparation for the World Cup.

“Hopefully I can impress enough to play in the warm-up before the 31-man squad is announced.”

As well as his strong claims to be skipper Alun Wyn Jones' second-row partner, Hill also provides a back-row option at six as Wales seek to build on Grand Slam glory and a 14-game unbeaten streak.

That flexibility could be crucial, especially as British and Irish Lions back-rower Taulupe Faletau has been ruled out of the World Cup with a collarbone injury.

"I'll play tight-head if they want me to!" said Hill. "I played six for the Dragons for four or five games over the Christmas derbies and the European games and I enjoyed my time there.

"It's another feather in the cap I suppose and if I'm needed to cover six I will do it, but I'm concentrating on lock at the moment."

Wales coach Warren Gatland will name his team for Sunday’s clash (kick-off 2pm) on Friday.

Principality Stadium hosts the reverse fixture between the teams next Saturday (kick-off 2.15pm), before Wales entertain Ireland on Saturday, August 31 (kick-off 2.30pm).

Wales will round off their pre-World Cup fixtures with a trip to Dublin to play the Irish again on Saturday, September 7 (kick-off 2pm).

The final 31-man squad departs for Japan the following Monday, and Wales kick off their campaign with a Pool D game against Georgia on Monday, September 23 (kick-off 11.15am).

Australia, Fiji and Uruguay are also in their pool.