Strettle: 'How we'll beat burnout'
Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:09
Good stepper: David Strettle ready to go
England and Harlequins flyer David Strettle is champing at the bit as he chases a number of team and personal goals - including regaining his place in the England squad.
With the Guinness Premiership season getting underway with a double header at England headquarters on Saturday - including Quins facing off to Saracens - there is no holding back the wing.
Not even the perennial debate about the need for longer rest periods and risks of player burnout can dampen the 24-year-old's enthusiasm for the new season.
Speaking to rugby365.com Strettle admitted that he was the missing game just six weeks into the 'off season' and are "excited" as he heads towards another bumper season of Premiership, European and hopefully international action.
But any talk of possible burnout is sidestepped with same ease he beats opponents to the tryline.
"Yes, sometimes there are too many games," he told this website, and without missing a step added: "But the players to want to play."
He felt the key is in getting the right balance between playing and staying "fresh" in mid-season.
"That is where a coach is so important in my view. He needs to keep it exciting at training and keep the players fresh," Strettle said, adding that Quins coach Dean Richards is one of those who gets the balance right.
The wing says his injury woes - two serious foot injuries, one of which ruled him out of England's 2007 World Cup campaign - is something of the past.
And not even the disappointment of having been axed from new England boss Martin Johnson's first squad - having been dropped to the Saxons - is going to distract him from the goals he set for himself.
While it may seem like a "step back", he is determined to show he is still of international class and in the process help Quins reach their goals of domestic and European silverware.
He says it is his "love for the game" that keeps driving him, even in this professional era where money seems to be the main focus of some players.
"When you turn your hobby into a profession, it can take some of the shine off," he said, adding: "But it is always good to play and I thoroughly enjoy it."
Asked about the Quins goals, he said the first was to "improve on last year" - which was a major disappointment for the men from the Stoop.
It was a heartbreaking finish to the 2007/08 Premiership season - when Leicester Tigers edged Quins into the play-offs with a 31-28 win in the final round of league action.
"We were very disappointed to miss out on the play-offs, and that is why we are so determined to obtain a spot in the semifinals," he said on the eve of the opening round of the 2008/09 season.
With Saracens first up at the Twickenham double header on Saturday, Quins are determined to "get off to a good start".
"Playing there [at Twickenham] is always a big day - be that in a club game, a big Final or even a Test and it always lifts the players," Strettle said.
"We also have the luxury of being based at the Stoop," he said of Quins' home ground, across the road from the English game's headquarters, Twickenham.
"There'll also be a lot more spectators there for the double header and it'll be a great atmosphere and an occasion."
Quins' challenge in the Heineken Cup, where they also failed to reach the play-offs, will be even bigger this year.
They are grouped with French giants Stade Francais, Welsh outfit Llanelli Scarlets and Irish province Ulster.
But the wing feels that no matter who you play, in the Heineken Cup there is never an easy group and they are determined to give "110 percent" in both the Premiership and on the European stage.
David Strettle spoke to rugby365.com courtesy of Land Rover, the official vehicle of England Rugby and Premier Rugby. For more information visit www.landrover.co.uk/rugby
By Jan de Koning
