PRE-SEASON is about team building and preparation – and Saints have had it in spades building up to the 2016 Super League campaign.
Gruelling sessions at the Club’s Cowley International College Training Centre have been the norm – with trips to the Dream, the Lake District and 42 Commando in Plymouth thrown in for good measure.
But it’s all about establishing the teamwork that could carry Saints back to title success.
“When you are a rugby league professional you try to find things which replicate how tough being in a game is,” Captain Jon Wilkin said. “To be honest in training you rarely find anything as tough as that.
“But the Lake’s camp was the closest I have got to the pure exhaustion you get in a match.
“It opened our eyes to some of the things we take for granted as professionals; the things that make us what we are.
“When you are tired you find out a lot about yourself. You discover what you can do with limited energy and see what energy comes from teammates too.
“Sessions like that are trying to find out who wants to do that for their teammates and who doesn’t.
“Tough times draw you close and it’s about getting through those tough times together.”
That team togetherness was on show at the Cassius Camp as Head of Strength and Conditioning Matt Daniels and his assistant Ade Gardner joined in the sessions alongside Nathan Mill, the Club’s and England physio!
