Everitt finally got his hands on a rugby ball in a Saints training session yesterday afternoon, after a month's work in the gym that the fly-half describes as being "the toughest pre-season I’ve done in a good number of years and we’re only a third of the way through it!

"The first four-week block was very intense but very rewarding," he says. "The guys who needed to lose a few kilos have lost them, and the guys who needed to gain a few kilos have gained them as well. It was exactly what the doctor ordered for me personally and the boys have enjoyed it as well. We were chomping at the bit to get the ball in our hands.

"It’s been very professional with programmes tailored to individuals which gives you an opportunity to work on what you wanted to do as well. We have to hit the ground running in the first division and be in prime condition. All we can do is be in the best possible shape and be as well prepared as we can for that first game in two months time. Going on the training we’ve done so far I can guarantee that we will be."

Barry Everitt trains under the watchful eyes of Jim Mallinder and Paul Grayson

Everitt signed a three-year contract in February and arrives at Franklin's Gardens following a successful number of years at London Irish in which he broke the club's points-scoring record as well as winning the PRA Golden Boot award. He also won the Powergen Cup and played in the Heineken Cup with the Exiles but insists that his ambition is not diminished.

"I wanted something new and exciting and coming to a new place makes you highly motivated," he says. "It regenerates your interest in the game. It’s never easy uprooting, especially when you have a family. But I haven’t found it too tough. There is a great bunch of guys who have made me settle in quicker than I thought I would. It was a bit strange signing my first Saints shirt when I hadn’t played for the club yet but I’m sure that a couple of months into the season I’ll feel like I’ve been playing here my whole life.

"This is a club with massive potential. There are quite a few good young players coming through and this season might be the perfect time to bring them through. They’re very keen, young and fit and who push the older guys like me a lot. They definitely add to the atmosphere and it gets the best out of the other players."