Mallinder hopes coaching change can spark bid for title

JIM Mallinder is hoping changes to the Saints coaching setup will help bring success back to the club following the deaprture of backs coach Alex King.

King’s departure was announced on Friday. He had arrived at Saints from Clermont Auvergne in the summer of 2013 and helped Mallinder’s men win the Premiership and Amlin Challenge Cup in 2014/15.

However with Saints having won just two of their opening six Premiership matche, Mallinder felt a change was needed.

Mallinder said: “It’s not nice and you don’t really want to make changes, particularly through the season. This is only the second coaching change we’ve made (following the departure of Paul Grayson in November 2012). And from that we went on and won the Premiership and finished top of the league and won a European competition.

“Hopefully this little change will do the same and we can go on and improve - that’s why you’ve got to change something sometimes. We do need to improve and hopefully we’ll see that in the weeks to come.”

Mallinder added: “When you’re working seven days a week with people, you get very close and Alex King is a fantastic lad.

“I’ve shared a lot of times with him socially, had beers and meals with him, and you do get to know each other.

“As well as being a fantastic lad and personality, he’s also a very good coach, but sometimes you need to change something and freshen things up. That’s what we’re doing.”