With Block Two of pre season underway, we caught up with veteran Australian back row Ben Adams, who’s feeling re-energised in what is a brand-new environment for this season’s Champ Rugby Squad – and the quality – and pace – of training has discernibly picked up…
“It’s definitely quicker – and I’m finding that with every session! The young players have turned up with far too much energy – and that’s brought a lot more enjoyment and better execution. It’s the first pre-season in a while when I’ve not come into it carrying an injury – I’d forgotten what fitness testing felt like! Whilst the scales are saying roughly the same, I’m much fitter and stronger than I was last season. The guys who’ve come back to the Club from last season have definitely transformed physically. It’s definitely what was needed and the new fellas coming in are upping the pace and upping the standards. We’ve all made changes and it’s all for the better.
“There’ve been a lot of changes – there’s still more plans in place to change further and I’m really looking forward to that. ‘Movement is life’, as they say – you have to keep progressing or things get stagnant. After a couple of tough years, we’re on track to move forward. I’m looking for all the positives and to enjoy this season. I’m even smiling at the end of a fitness session, which is a measure of the changes that have been put in place. I’ve always said as soon as I don’t enjoy a Tuesday night scrum and maul session in January, it might be time to pack it in, but I’m loving this -the feeling after a session, the sense of accomplishment, and I’m wringing every ounce of fun out of it!
“The intensity and the clarity are much more refined now – there are mini goals, and longer-term goals in progress. The clarity of direction from the start hasn’t changed – it’s been the same messages and we’re all striving towards those goals. We’re going through the moves and the game plans and slowly drip-feeding in new stuff – that clarity of direction has definitely upped the quality. One of those short-term goals is being hard to beat. It’s very hard to get wins in the Champ – especially given the disparity in budgets and the number of full-time sides versus the part-time sides. From being ‘hard to beat’, that’s when the wins will start to come”.