Pre-season is taking shape
WE are now into the full swing of pre-season and it's great to be back in the squad environment, especially with plenty of optimism ahead of the big kick-off.
I had two weeks off where I went on holiday to Barbados but I was back at Hartpury more or less three weeks before anyone else trying to rehab my ankle.
Gradually all the boys started coming back in and it was only 10 or so of the international boys who were missing.
The boys were off last week but again I was in working on my ankle.
But they have all come back this week and we are pretty much up to full ranks which is great.
Paddy Anson took charge of the first few weeks and we got through a lot of conditioning work, then Nick Walshe turned up to a few sessions and he introduced the ball and started doing some skills stuff.
John Muggleton arrived last week and he's taking charge of this week with a big focus on defence.
Nick and John both seem like really good guys.
John is very self-assured and confident and he just wants to pass his experience onto the guys.
He has showed us the stats of last year and what is and isn't acceptable.
He has done some sessions this week and seeing the boys' faces and hearing what they were saying you can tell they have been very good.
He wants us to have so much information and preparation in terms of defence that there will be no excuses.
It is going to be detail, detail, detail so when you get to the match the guys will hopefully have much more confidence in what they are doing.
It's been pretty tough so far but you still feel there is more to come.
Last year we had 'Front up Fridays' where we went off to the Brecon Beacons and Yorkshire for army sessions and those kind of things.
Those days were very mentally challenging.
We have had nothing like that so far but the training has been very hard.
The boys have been completely flogged doing hill sprints. There's even been a few being sick.
All the sessions have been monitored with GPS tracking and heart rate monitors to make sure the boys are pushed to the limit.
That kind of thing might come in the next couple of weeks but they keep the details pretty quiet.
One of the first Fridays we were told the bus was departing at a certain time and straight away you started to wonder what lung-busting session we're letting ourselves in for.
Some of the boys were getting worried but when we arrived it was just a team building day – the kind of thing where you transfer logs through holes and build rafts.
It was a great day and while it wasn't particularly challenging physically it was tough and great for team bonding.
With so many new faces this year that is more important than ever, we need to break down any barriers and bond as soon as possible.
We need to get to know each other and to understand each other on the pitch.
Laurie Fisher is not here yet because the Brumbies are doing so well, Walshy is in and out and David Humphreys is not in until August 1.
We have to make sure we are comfortable with each other by the time they arrive because it is only a few weeks until our first pre-season games.New boys must still face initiations
THERE'S been a huge amount of change to the playing squad this summer but everyone that has come in has been great.
Greig Laidlaw came in and trained sooner than he was scheduled to because his wife was expecting a baby, and that just shows how much he wanted to be here.
He has massive respect from the boys for what he has done in his career and you can't help to compare him to Brush (Bryan Redpath).
He is a similar, small scrum-half and there are some comparisons in looks but we have to make sure we don't take the mick out of him like we did with Brush because he is a different personality. He is very professional and just goes about his job.
Then there are guys like John Afoa and Richard Hibbard who have been very open and up front from the start. Days like the team building are designed for exactly that and ensure all the guys open up.
There will definitely be some initiations for the new boys but there is some confusion over the head shave/milk challenge rules. There's talk of it not applying to those over 26-year-sold so we will see.
I'm not sure if Hibbard had it written into his contract that we couldn't do it but perhaps we will have to pull in the likes of Phil Vickery, Trevor Woodman and Andy Hazell to help.
If they start swinging there are some big boys so maybe we will have to get big John on side early and use his weight.
n I'm still on course to be there for the first games. The ankle has been testing but I'm getting there. I was running the other week and got a little bit of pain so eased off. It's just about getting the balance right between pain I have to live with and pain we have to get rid of.
We're all happy to play with knocks but we have to make sure it is right but I have done so much rehab and strength work that I don't think it will get a million times stronger. I'm still on target for the big kick-off
I'm still on course to be there for the first games. The ankle has been testing but I'm getting there. I was running the other week and got a little bit of pain so eased off. It's just about getting the balance right between pain I have to live with and pain we have to get rid of.
We're all happy to play with knocks but we have to make sure it is right but I have done so much rehab and strength work that I don't think it will get a million times stronger.
