It is 10 days before the start of the new Gallagher Prem season and Franklin’s Gardens is a hive of activity. Over in the High Performance Centre, director of rugby Phil Dowson and his coaching staff are working the reigning English champions hard – a large squad of established stars, new recruits and budding Northampton Saints hurry through handling drills, with head coach Sam Vesty as energetic as ever despite a recent knee operation. Young Italian wing Edoardo Todaro is helping compatriot Malik Faissal bed in; as the rest of the squad disappears into the stadium itself for lunch, lock JJ van der Mescht ducks away, keeping to a strict one-meal-a-day diet. At 145kg, the South African second row is heavy enough as is.
Over in the supporters’ village, which sits beyond the lake behind the South Stand, they could do with having Van der Mescht’s heft to hand. The furniture that will adorn the new and vastly improved events space has just arrived, with the final licks of paint being put on after a summer transformation. Gone are the unsightly and unwieldy tent, mismatched parking spaces and Foundation building that crowded the space; in their place have arrived fresh tarmac, streamlined catering outlets and a fancy, AI-powered, help-yourself bar.
