Saints star Mitchell seeking 'perfect game'

And the Saints star will be hoping that comes against Leicester Tigers on Saturday afternoon.

Mitchell was in fine form once again last weekend, helping to mastermind a 38-22 win against London Irish.

The scrum-half provided a superb try assist in that match before also bagging a score of his own.

But Mitchell insists he still has plenty to work on as he tries to deliver a complete performance.

"I feel like my game is getting there but I'm always trying to chase that perfect game," said the 25-year-old, who was named Saints' players and supporters' player of the year last season.

"There are things that are going really well and others that I'm struggling with, so I have to keep working every week and hopefully my performances will get better."

Saints have shown glimpses of what they are capable of in the two Gallagher Premiership games so far, but they will need to fully click to tame the Tigers this weekend.

"There's a lot of teams who are in the same boat (in terms of putting their game together)," Mitchell said.

"We've got a lot of new boys and they're getting there now.

"We're slowly getting to where we want to be, and hopefully we'll be alright for the rest of the season.

"Everyone's pretty excited about this weekend - these are the games you want to be involved in.

"I've obviously been involved in a few derby weeks now so it's a huge week and I'm very excited."

Leicester beat Saints in the play-off semi-finals last season before going on to grab the title at Twickenham.

And Mitchell knows what kind of threat the champions will pose this weekend.

He said: "Obviously they're a very good side.

"Hopefully we can deal with their threats up front, their set piece and their dominance in the forwards.

"If we look after them there, play our game, move them around the field and take our chances - we'll have a good chance.

"We need to do the little things better than we did in the semi-final.

"Their kicking game is huge so we need to look after that and then take our chances.

"We know we're going to get five or 10 chances - but we need to take them."

Phil Dowson took over from Chris Boyd as director of rugby at Saints this summer, but Mitchell says there has been plenty of continuity.

"Not much has changed in that department and the coaches have been amazing, giving us the same messages," Mitchell said.

"We're trying to build that momentum from last year and that confidence because we went on a winning streak and we want that this year.

"We know every game is important to get into that top four and top two so we're trying to push on."

Saints are set to welcome back Courtney Lawes, Lewis Ludlam and Tommy Freeman this week, following their mandatory 10-week rest period after England duty.

And Mitchell said: "It's always massive to have the international boys back.

"It's not just what they bring on the field, it's off the field, too.

"They bring that leadership and having them on the field, you see how they play the game and it helps you as well.

"It's huge to have them back, and it's an exciting week for them and everyone else."