If Worcester Warriors can play from the start of this season with the incisiveness and class that they finished the last, their supporters will be in for a treat.
There is every sign that the business end of the club has done its bit to try and keep the momentum going.
The club has a new branded logo and has acquired, particularly in Chris Latham, some top class players - but the biggest indication of intent, as general manager Charlie Little so neatly put it, is the large new stand that has sprung up at Sixways over the summer.
Large parts will be open for the first home game of the season against Leicester and it will increase capacity by 2,000 to 12,000. But as coach Mike Ruddock pointed out yesterday, it is time for his players to deliver and he is confident he has the right cocktail of experience, youth and quality to challenge “big time”.
Much will depend, of course, on how his squad adapts to the controversial Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) that are being introduced to the English game this season.
“I think the jury is out a bit on the ELVs but we have been tracking the Tri-Nations and Currie Cup and there are some big changes there,” said Ruddock.
“Graham Henry [New Zealand coach] said he felt they promoted more kicking but we will have to wait and see. We still want to be a side that is positive with the ball and one which wants to make things happen - but we will need another way to play.
“Whatever approach we take into games, we need to be able to adapt. What we like and don’t like does not matter; we can’t get too emotional there. As a coaching group, we have to accept the laws are there and try to adapt.”
Worcester will not go in unprepared. They have hired ex-international referee Hugh Watkins on a consultancy basis to increase their understanding of the rules, a measure Ruddock hopes will give his side a head start.
He added: “In the last few years, we haven’t got off to good starts but, if you look around and see the quality and mix of the players we have, then we have to be confident.
“We missed out on a lot of games by small margins last year and that didn’t help us with our confidence but I think tenth place was a fair reflection. We knew we weren’t far away but once we made a significant breakthrough at Sale, the confidence was back and some of the rugby we played was quite spectacular.
“Every coach would say they would like a couple more players but we have to work within budgets and salary caps. Seven Academy players made first-team debuts last season and they will be a big part of the squad this year. We think it is a squad capable of challenging big time but it is one thing talking about it and another thing doing it.”
Ruddock suggested that picking a favourite to win the Premiership is close to impossible given the new laws and the closeness of the division in which “anybody can beat anybody”.
Captain Pat Sanderson agreed, saying: “I don’t think it’s right to say that we should come first or second or wherever. We need to get our processes right and then no doubt we will be successful.
“As for the ELVs, it’s still rugby at the end of the day. We can have all the philosophies in the world about how we will play but it is still early days for us. Ask me in three weeks.”
