England experiences aid Saints' young guns

Not only had he continued to increase his sheer bulk but he had an added authority that he gained from the experiences he enjoyed in Japan.

Ludlam was a Test player returning to his Premiership club - and you could tell.

He had profited from being part of an England team that went all the way to the World Cup final.

And the fact he had shown he could do it at the top level seemed to boost his confidence.

He was also able to add new things to his armoury, and it was not only England who benefited as Saints clearly did, too.

And with so many young players now treading the path from Franklin’s Gardens to Twickenham, Saints will expect to continue to profit from those experiences in years to come.

Another player who has been able to make his mark for England in recent times is full-back George Furbank.

The 23-year-old made his England debut against France earlier this year.

And Furbank told the Rugby Paper: “It was a dream and even now when we’ve been doing video messages with people during lockdown and they introduce me as ‘England and Saints full-back George Furbank,’ I still find that really weird and have to pinch myself a bit.

“It will take some time to get used to and it was an unbelievable experience that I’m incredibly proud of, but the key thing now is that I don’t want to be that person who’s had one good season at Saints, gets two caps for England and then does nothing else.

“I’ve got bigger ambitions than that and I really want to put my foot down again when things get back up and running properly in the Premiership.

“I hope that will put me back into England contention, which is what I’ve got my mind set on, and (Saints boss) Chris Boyd is very good at ensuring people’s feet are kept firmly on the ground.

“He talked to us before we went into camp in January saying similar things and I expect exactly the same when we’re all back at the club and close to playing again.

“Both Chris and (attack coach) Sam Vesty want the guys who’ve been with England to bring what we’ve learned back to Saints so we can be even bigger voices and be more confident as players slipping into leadership roles by imparting that knowledge.”

While Furbank faces plenty of competition for the full-back slot with England, it is not plain sailing for him at Franklin’s Gardens either.

“I love that competition, to be honest,” Furbank said.

“I roomed with Elliot Daly for a couple of nights on England duty and he really helped me settle in, whilst the others are class players as well, so it’s no different to your club where the competition is very high.

“At Northampton there’s Harry (Mallinder), ‘Ace’ (Tuala) and Tommy (Freeman) but that’s exciting because you know that week-in, week-out you’ve got to be at your best to have that No.15 shirt.

“The moment you drop below your best, someone else is going to step up and take it from you.

“There’s a little added competition here and whilst I don’t want to speak for Harry Mallinder, we’re both very excited that we’re in this position.

“He was in good form prior to the break and is a class player as well, so hopefully we can make selection difficult for Boydy.”