Collins one of several ex-Saints aces ready to lead the charge for ambitious Oundle

That trend was Oundle RFC announcing the signings of former Saints players.

Tom Collins was the most eye-catching of the lot, having been such a big figure over so many years at Franklin’s Gardens after coming through the Academy.

Will Glister was another notable recruit, having only left Gallagher PREM winners Saints at the end of last season.

Collins and Glister join Frankie Sleightholme, Matt Arden, Ewan Baker, Shaun Adendorff, Toby Trinder, George Patten and Fraser Strachan in an Oundle squad that looks set to pack a real punch at National League 2 East level this season.

There is clearly a huge amount of ambition at the club, who only narrowly missed out on promotion last time round, suffering a 19-15 defeat to Birmingham Moseley in the National 1 accession final.

This season though, Oundle will be backed to get over the line, with their former Saints aces set to be at the forefront of the charge.

So just what is going on at the north Northamptonshire outfit and how have they been able to recruit someone of Collins’ repute?

It seemed only right to ask the man himself, who took time out of balancing his busy rugby and business schedule to speak to this publication about his fresh start.

"They (Oundle) are really trying to push forward,” said Collins, who left perennial Champ Rugby pacesetters Ealing Trailfinders this summer.

"There's a three, four-year plan for them to progress up the leagues and try to move forward from National 2.

"They were very close last year and they just missed out on the last play-off day.

"From my perspective, I'd been at Ealing for the past three years, played some great rugby there, had some great times, but it was just very tricky with what's next.

"I'd always been thinking about what's next and Oundle came around so it was a great opportunity for me, bearing in mind it still keeps that competitive edge and it's a chance to push on.

"It's exciting and when I spoke to Oundle about who they were signing, they are mostly ex-Saints boys, boys who have played at a high standard in the Champ and boys I know of who are also good lads and who want to learn.

"These lads don't just want to come in and sit there, they actually want to move forward to good things so it's exciting.

"For lads like Frankie Sleightholme and Will Glister, they want to come and play rugby.

"I experienced it that when you're between 18 and 21, because you're sat behind older players it's very difficult to get the exposure that players need.

"They've seen the opportunity at Oundle, where they can grow, they can learn.

"There's a mix of experience with the likes of Fraser Strachan and Toby Trinder, who have got a lot of games in the Champ and who they can lean on and learn from.

"The coaching group is great as well and it's exciting.

"For me, I'm not having to travel five hours a day to get down to Ealing and back. I'm actually able to travel half an hour, balance work and playing and give my experience as well so it's good.”

If anyone is still wondering just why there are so many former Saints players now at Oundle, director of rugby and key club figure Aly Kachra, who played a big role in getting Collins to make the move, provides an answer.

Kachra explained: "Matt Arden, who was a mini and junior at Oundle and who I’ve always kept in touch with during his time at Saints and then when he went to Nottingham, was probably a big part of that because he has a contingent of guys, Glister, Patten, Sleightholme, Baker, who were all together in the same age group.

"They were all together on senior Academy contracts, played in the PREM Cup (for Saints) and had gone on to other clubs so when I brought Matt back, he could see what was going on at the club and what we’re trying to do.

"He’s been able to speak to those guys and tell them we didn’t quite make it but there’s still an itch to scratch and perhaps we can go and do that at Oundle.”

Kachra added: “I’ve been dealing with the recruitment and it’s always a process.

"Despite what people think, we can’t afford the salaries other people can, and certainly the elite clubs, but what we’ve been able to do really well is piece together support outside of that in terms of where they want to go with their careers and we see how we can support that ambition along with what we can do from a rugby perspective as well.”

Collins is certainly someone who wants to not only succeed on the pitch but off it, too.

The 32-year-old has been establishing a successful business since his time at Saints, running HC Design & Build, a Northampton-based construction company specialising in the design and build of high-quality residential and commercial spaces.

And the move from Ealing to Oundle will allow him to spend more time on his laptop than on the training field.

“I find it weird that I was actually playing some of my best rugby at Ealing bearing in mind what we had on off the pitch as well,” Collins said.

"It was a huge amount because I was working in the evenings, leaving at 5am, getting to Ealing for 7am, finishing about 2pm, 3pm, rushing back to get on site, working all evening and it got to the point where I was a bit burnt out.

"This move to Oundle gives me a chance to balance it all, get my ducks in a row, push forward and it’s somewhere with that growth mindset with a good group of players.

"It’s such a community centre at Oundle and there are lads there that I went to college with so it’s exciting to be back playing with a good group of mates really.”

With so many new arrivals, what do the players who were already at Oundle last season think of all the change?

"I think they’re excited as well,” Collins said.

"It’s a great crop of lads who have been at the club for years and it’s a great opportunity for them to learn as well.

"They get to learn, experience it all and everyone I’ve spoken to is a massive advocate of it all.

"Don’t get me wrong, I’ve read some stuff online about them getting a lot of heat about all the stuff that’s going on but they’ve got intent with the guys coming in and as long as they stay close to their roots, which I’m sure they will do, it will hopefully drive the club forward in the right direction.

"Rugby is all about community – and that’s something Aly is massive on.”

Kachra hopes some Saints fans will get behind their former players by attending an Oundle game or two when the black, green and gold are not in action.

He said: “People want to see good rugby and I’m super ambitious about growing the game.

"Northampton do it really well but there is still opportunity for growth and what creates excitement is doing what we’re doing: bringing some big players people can see and watch.

"That brings people here, even non-rugby fans who see this buzz around the club. It gets people to the club and more engaged with the sport.

"After the bleak years rugby has had over the past few years, it’s really good to see.”

The Saints connection at Oundle has been noticeable in training pictures this summer, with several men still wearing some Northampton kit during the summer preparations.

And Collins said: “They’ve all been in Saints gear!

"You’ve even got Shaun Adendorff who has been at Oundle for a few years and he still wears his full Saints stash!”

The former Saints players will be very much in full Oundle kit this weekend as they get set to start their season with a home game against Esher on Saturday (kick-off 2pm).

And Kachra is hoping his new-look squad can help take the club to the next level this time round.

"Teams always go through transitions and one of the my big learnings from last season is that there is a need to shift the age demographic to younger players and you’ll see that,” Kachra said.

“Talking of the ex-Saints contingent, we’ve got Will Glister but also players like George Patten and Matt Arden, so you’ve got an age demographic that is now getting younger blended with the experience we already had.

"It’s about planning over the next five years where we want to be and certainly those guys like TC (Collins) are brilliant to have because he can support the Frankie Sleightholmes of the world and hopefully he can take his shirt.

"TC has got a few years left in him but he certainly doesn’t want to be playing for the next five years and that’s where the younger guys like Glister and Frankie have the chance to learn from him and take over from him in the coming years."

For now though, Collins is very much a key cog in the Oundle matchday squad.

However, he is taking nothing for granted ahead of the season opener, scoffing at suggestions he may be able to add plenty more tries to his sizeable career tally.

"In rugby, it's a lot tighter than you'd think levels wise, which has always surprised me,” Collins said.

"I really struggled going from Saints in the PREM to Ealing in the Champ because there's different elements you've got to adapt to, including being more physical.

"I'm one of those guys who likes to play with ball in hand, I'm a bit jinky and I don't like to get tackled, whereas in the Champ you need to front up and that's something I learned to do.

"It could be the same at this level because I've got no idea how teams are going to play. I don't know whether they're going to mitigate playing by kicking and mauling or whether they will actually play a bit.

"For the likes of myself, Will, Frankie and the others it's about adapting and seeing how we get on.

"But hopefully we get a few tries!

"I don't actually think it's as easy as people make out coming down the leagues.

"I found with Ealing, teams want to beat you up, get on top of you and every week for teams like Ealing and Oundle, teams are going to want to beat us, they're going to want to prove a point and come after us.

"It won't be as easy as we're hoping but it will be exciting and hopefully we can start well.”