Refreshed Wilson just raring to go
FLANKER RELISHING NEW FALCONS SEASON
NEWCASTLE Falcons’ and England flanker Mark Wilson says he is refreshed and ready to charge into the new Gallagher Premiership season after a summer on international duty.
The Cumbrian workhorse was among the players to emerge with credit from England’s June tour to South Africa, playing in two of the three Tests after another stellar season at club level.
“It has been good to go away and have a bit of a refresh after the tour,” said the 28-year-old, who passed the 200 appearance mark for Newcastle last season in a campaign which saw the Falcons reach three semi-finals.
“I have been doing a bit of conditioning while I have been away so it has been more a case of getting up to speed with the rugby stuff.
“I have come back in now and the lads are in great shape, so we are just looking to develop ourselves and our game for the season ahead.”
On his England exploits, Wilson added: “It was really good being in South Africa and it was not all about the rugby. We did stuff off the field which the management see as important and we had some decent down time. We were in Durban during the training week, we managed to get in a bit of recovery down near the beach and during our free time we did a bit of surfing and bodyboarding, which I had never done before. “We managed to dodge the great white sharks, which was handy, and it was an enjoyable experience. “Being involved in two of the three Tests was fantastic from a personal sense and it was a big moment for me to get on the field during both of those games.
“What we did in terms of our preparation I felt was spot-on.
“I would not personally change how we prepared or went about our business while we were out there and it was only our execution during the games which was the issue.
“All the off-field stuff and preparation was fine but it was disappointing to lose those first two Tests.”
Fully focused on club duty now after resuming pre-season training, Wilson is committed to helping the Falcons kick on from their highest league finish in two decades.
He said: “We keep growing each season and it is gradual progress.
“To be fair to Dean Richards he was clear from day one when he came into the club six years ago.
“He said it was not going to be an overnight job and it would take a good few years to get to where we wanted to be, which was top six and top four on a regular basis.
“The players all realised it was going to be a long-term thing and we have improved every year.
“It has not been wholesale change, we have added a little bit every season and we have kept the same core together.”
Seeing a targeted influx of quality signings including Logovi’i Mulipola, George McGuigan and Johnny Williams, Wilson said: “We are in a position now where we have a group of guys who want to play for Newcastle - a lot of them are local lads and it means a lot to all of us.
“That was evident in the many tight games we won last year, we dug out results when our backs were against the wall.”
The lads are in great shape and we are just looking to develop ourselves and our game for the season ahead Mark Wilson