Ben Hughes' pro approach to Saxons

Stourbridge captain Ben Hughes enjoyed periods as a full-time rugby player during his early career at Gloucester and Worcester.

And, following the Saxons' link-up with the Warriors this season, he is being reminded of the benefits brought by a more professional approach to the game.

He said: "The link with Worcester is working brilliantly, and both clubs are benefitting from it.

"From a Stourbridge perspective, there is no doubt that it has made us a lot more professional. We have set team goals, and established the values that will get us where we want to be.

"Everyone has their own individual targets, but we also have a set of agreed team values, that embrace a wider trust, respect and honesty policy towards each other.

"This means that on a Tuesday, when we look back at the previous week's match, everyone is really honest, and there is a debate about where we have made mistakes and how we can improve.

"There isn't a character assassination when things have gone badly, so when things have gone well everyone is now open and honest enough to say "well done – that was a brilliant pass or tackle."

"Although there is often a technical aspect to why something has gone wrong, there is generally a deeper-lying cause behind this – maybe we weren't working hard enough, or supporting each other well enough, and this is now openly discussed.

"The big step forward we have made is due to everyone now having unquestioning belief in these values, and displaying this in how they play.

"The club also now has a much more structured approach, not just to what we are doing this week, but also to the longer term.

"In previous years we have been a bit heart-on-the-sleeve, and taken the approach that we will get stuck into the opposition and see what happens.

"This season Tony Windo, Thinus Delport and Neil Mitchell have worked together to bring a lot more stability and organisation to our training, so we all go on the field with a clear plan of attack.

"Having this structure especially helps the 10 or 12 of us who are not part of the full-time training at Worcester, as with so much mapped out for you, it is easy to focus on what is important.

"Allied to this, the strength of the team values makes you doubly aware that you are not just letting yourself down, but also everyone else, should your approach slip."