Dan Soper on...
Benetton positives
It was great to see the new faces playing. Guys like Aidan (Morgan) coming in, it was great for him to get an opportunity to play with the guys he has been training with. It was a chance for us to see how he gets on in a game situation, and I thought he did really well.
We’ve had a look at areas we know we need to go after but also we so had so many young academy guys playing, which was awesome to see. They did well, so we feel positive and optimistic about the start.
Young players stepping up
The young guys stepped up, guys like James McNabney who we saw a but of last year – I thought he stepped up really well and the next tier under that who got their first opportunity like Tom Brigg and Charlie Irvine, James McKillop – it showed we are working hard to develop those guys and they will create good depth.
On Zac Ward's performance
It is a steep learning curve but I thought he did really well on Saturday night, he got the ball in hand and he makes things happen like he did in the sevens game. If we can create opportunities for him on the edge, he could be really devastating. It is so foreign to him as he’s played all his 15s rugby in the back row and now we are getting him working on back-field coverage, catching high balls and those sort of things. He has been really good at going after it.
Facing Exeter Chiefs
It's not as much about it being Exeter but more an opportunity for the team to play a pre season game and test where we are at. We want to take a step forward from last week, the challenge with Exeter is we know they are a very good team, have a lot of depoth and they will be going strong for the start of their league. There won’t be much relevance for our Champions Cup match in January but a good test for us.
Potential of Werner Kok
He was one guy as a collective that we used to hate playing against. He is such an energy giver to his team, he is the sort of player that the crowd get behind, he gets the crowd going. I’m really looking forward to seeing the energy he brings, he’s relentless and it will be infectious to the team and supporters.
Kieran Treadwell on...
Pre-season preparations
It’s really good at the moment, we have a lot of young guys coming up – the likes of Charlie and James McKillop coming up, they are really pushing for the opportunities. They are training alongside us and putting their names in the hat, it brings the standard of everyone up.
I try and be there for anyone who needs anything, the same way people did for me when I was younger. I’m still not the oldest!
Facing Exeter this weekend
Sandy Park is a tough place to go but from what I remember from playing years before at Harlequins is that it is a fast track and suits how we want to play. It’s probably going to be windy down there but we know what they will bring, they have a big pack so it will be confrontational. We will focus on ourselves and build on what we did against Benetton.
On the new faces in team
It brings an element of freshness, someone like Aidan Morgan coming in from a different hemisphere and a different style of rugby brings a freshness. Having someone like Werner Kok and his personality coming in is great for everyone.
On a full pre-season with Richie Murphy
He’s very simple in the messaging and wants to get things perfect in what we are doing. We are always doing reps and being put under pressure all the time to make it like a game scenario, minus some of the contact. He is very meticulous in making things consistent. Jimmy Duffy coming in too has been great for me to pluck his mind with the knowledge he has.