Heald hopes his Lions can roar louder
Leicester Lions are hoping to challenge for promotion after finishing on the podium last season but new director of rugby Jack Heald reckons they will have to win the “closest league in recent years” to do so.
Working as Cambridge’s defence coach in past seasons, Heald has taken over from Andy Key at the Lions, who won 21 of their 30 games last term on their way to a third place finish behing table toppers Caldy and Sale.
A higher finish is the target of Heald and his troops but, with Macclesfield and Blaydon relegated from National One and Sale missing out on promotion after losing their play-off to Bishop’s Stortford, he is not expecting an easy ride.
“We should be in a reasonable place this season but I expect the National Two North league to the closest it’s been for a number of years,” he told The Rugby Paper.
“We’ve had runaway winners in the past couple of season but I reckon the top four or five teams will be very close this year.
“We could challenge for promotion this year. We have a smaller squad compared to others but if we keep everyone fit we might have a chance.
“But it’s the same for everyone this time of year. They all feel good and think they’ll challenge for the top.
“We start with a trip to Sale so that should be a nice introduction for us before two local derbies against South Leicester and Hinckley. We’ll see where we stand after the first block of games.”
The Lions will head into the season on the back of three pre-seasn defeats to National One opposition, but Heald remains confident of his side’s abilities.
He added: “We’ve played against Coventry, Old Albanians and Cambridge in the past three weeks and we’ve competed quite well against them so we’re in a good place going into the season.
“Although it’s nice to get a win in pre-season, it was about getting the players in a really good place and I think we’ve done that.
“Andy Key left the squad in a good shape so it was all about making little adjustments to get the players used to the way I work.
“We’ve had a couple of lads joining from local clubs and they’ve impressed in pre-season.
“That was always the plan for us as there was no reason for the Lions to overhaul their squad after such a good season.
“If anything my arrival is the only big change this summer. We’re very much looking to build on continuity.
“We pushed the three National One teams for long periods of the game. We proved we can be competitive – now it’s up to the players to keep the standards up leading into the new season.”