South African centre Corne Uys admits he is bursting at the seams to get a full pre-season under his belt following his switch to Kingston Park midway through last term.
Uys, 30, who made the move from Freestate Cheetahs in October of last year, reveals he is looking forward to getting stuck into training under the watchful eye of a top-class coaching set-up.
“It was not ideal arriving midway through last season but I have now had a break and I am really looking forward to a good pre-season,” Uys told Falcons TV following training yesterday.
“Pre-season has been great so far and we are currently in a six week block which gives us plenty of time to start from square one and work our way up.
“The strength and conditioning department have been doing a really good job with some individual training programmes. They have been looking at each player individually and what the needs of that player are,” he added.
Standing pitch side at training it is clear to see the players being put through their paces with a string of intense drills.
And while the Bredasdorp-born centre reveals training has been gruelling, he is relishing the challenge of working with the new-look set-up.
He said: “Training is pretty tough particularly on Tuesday’s and Friday’s as we do a lot of fitness and we do a lot of running but in general it is all hard work.
“A guy like Steady [Graham Steadman] has been fantastic working with us on our defence and he has a clever view as to where he wants the team to be, so I have definitely enjoyed working with him.
“From a players point of view it is great to work with new faces and get different views on the same thing. With the new coaches coming in, it has created an added enthusiasm to the squad and the new guys have slotted in well, so there is a good vibe at the moment.”
You can watch the full interview with the speedy back only on Falcons TV by clicking here. We will be catching up with new signing Rory Lawson and fly-half Jimmy Gopperth later today so keep your eyes peeled for more Falcons TV interviews.
You can snap up your 2012-13 Season Ticket by calling the Falcons Ticket Hotline on 0871 226 6060 or click here to purchase online.
The northeasterners kick-off their pre-season programme with a triple header at Kingston Park as Doncaster Knights and Leeds Carnegie take on a Newcastle XV either side of Consett Rugby’s match against Chicago outfit Illinois Tornados.
This is followed by Edinburgh at home on Friday 17 August (kick-off 7.45pm).
Tickets for the home friendlies are priced at £10 adults and £5 under-16s by calling the Falcons Ticket Hotline on 0871 226 6060 or click here to purchase online.
