Myler: Result does matter in Saints’ friendly at Saracens

Stephen Myler says Saints will be bothered about the result when they face Saracens on Saturday (kick-off 2pm).
Stephen Myler can't wait for Saturday's pre-season game at SaracensStephen Myler can't wait for Saturday's pre-season game at Saracens
Stephen Myler can't wait for Saturday's pre-season game at Saracens

Although the match at Allianz Park is only a friendly, Myler insists his men are keen to pick up the victory.

The two teams will be meeting for the first time since Saints were beaten in last season’s Aviva Premiership play-off semi-final at Franklin’s Gardens.

And Myler said: “We always want to win.

“There’s probably not as much emphasis on opposition and analysis going into this game because it’s not a league game or a cup game, but we still want to win.

“We still want to do everything we can and we want to do it well.

“That will lead into the following week and the game at Wasps, and then into the season.”

The 29-24 defeat to Saracens was the last time Saints played.

And Myler said: “Last season seems way in the distance.

“It has been a long pre-season, a lot of weeks’ training, but we’ve got a lot of work done conditioning wise.

“We’ve just started to put the rugby elements to training in the last few weeks so the boys are all really excited to get playing again.

“These games come thick and fast and even though it’s essentially a friendly, we want to play as well as we can.

“Saracens are going to be a really good test for us. We know what they’re about and they know a lot about us as well.

“It will be a good test for us but we’re looking forward, we’re excited to get playing again and getting some of the new lads up to speed with how we do things to improve this year.”

Stephen Myler was speaking in support of Aviva Premiership Rugby First Timers, a joint initiative from Premiership Rugby and Aviva to give 2,000 new rugby fans their first taste of the Aviva Premiership. First Timers can apply for free tickets this season at premiershiprugby.com/avivafirsttimers.