Saints teenager Todaro so good he's even made Lions star Freeman nervous

And British & Irish Lions star Freeman knows no player's place in the black, green and gold team is guaranteed with such impressive young talent emerging from the club’s Academy.

Todaro announced himself on the Gallagher PREM stage with two tries in the opening-day draw against Exeter Chiefs last month.

The 19-year-old’s talent has been spoken about at the Gardens for a number of years as he has excelled for Saints Under-18s and Italy Under-20s.

And now Todaro’s ability is becoming known to a far wider audience, including Freeman.

“He’s very skillful – he’s got me a bit nervous in my seat – but all these first years are incredible,” Freeman said.

"I don’t know what they’re feeding these guys now! I did not come in (looking) like that and I’m pretty sure most of my year did not come in like that, so they’re pretty special this year and it will be good to see them grow.

“He came into training before some of the PRC games, little bits and bobs when he’d come into training, as a few of them do. But he’s pretty special, he’s got lightning feet and I’m happy he’s on my team, that’s for sure.”

Freeman may only be 24 but he’s already an inspiration for young players at Saints, having starred for his club, country and the Lions.

So has he been helping Todaro?

“I try to give off what I can and obviously I’m open to any questions they have,” said Freeman, who is set to make his 100th Saints appearance this weekend.

"We want to grow as a team and you probably saw back in the day that Academy lads didn’t get as much game time as they probably are now, so that’s credit to them how hard they work in the gym and how they’re doing on the pitch to give themselves an opportunity.”