Prem: Alex Mitchell’s happy to stick with Northampton Saints

Alex Mitchell had little hesitation in signing a new contract with Northampton, confident the Saints will add to the league title they won two seasons ago.

The Lions scrum-half, who returned to action last weekend after a five-week rest following the tour, will be turning his attention to England at the start of this week as they have a three-day camp ahead of the four autumn internationals before Friday’s clash with Saracens at Franklin’s Gardens.

“I still had another year with Northampton and it was an easy decision to stay,” said the 28-year-old Mitchell, who joined the Saints’ academy 10 years ago.

“I really wanted to stay. A number of boys were out of contract and we had a big chat.

Domino effect

“The consensus was that we liked it here, were a good set of mates so let’s sign. Fin Smith led the way and then it was a domino effect.

“We know we have a good squad here. We have the quality to get into the top two and push for the Champions Cup again.

“We were not consistent enough last season with injuries and maybe going away from our DNA, but we started this season well and we can win again.”

Learned

Two years ago, Mitchell was left out of England’s World Cup squad only to be called up when Jack van Poortvliet was injured.

He quickly made the starting jersey his own and was in the Lions 23 for all three summer Tests against Australia, England’s opponents on November 1, with the 36-strong squad announced next Sunday.

“I learned a lot from the Lions and I like to think I came back a better player,” he said. “I was with top scrum-halves and tried to learn little things from how they see the game differently.

“It was a beneficial tour for me and when all the Northampton Lions returned to the club, the coaches grabbed us about implementing ideas we had picked up and we mentioned a few things.”

Leader: Fin Smith

Influence

Mitchell was in Newcastle with Northampton on Friday night, catching up with the Red Bulls‘ coaches Alan Dickens and Lee Dickson, below, two men who had an influence on his career.

“Alan was one of my coaches when I was growing up,” said Mitchell. “He pushed me on and gave me confidence.

“Lee was one of the scrum-halves here when I arrived and, with Kahn Fotuali’i and Cobus Reinach, taught me a lot.

“I had really good 9s to learn from and they helped me grow as a player.”

Frustrating

Mitchell missed the start of last season with a neck injury that kept him out of the autumn internationals and he impatiently watched the first two rounds of the Prem as he completed his rest period before starting against Leicester last weekend.

“I was straight into one of the biggest games of the season and was blowing for the first 10 minutes,” he said.

“It was frustrating watching, but my body needed the rest. When I started playing for England, I struggled a bit with the back and forth, but now appreciate it for what it is.”

Mitchell is one of the senior players in the Northampton squad but, despite his success, is as eager to get better as he was when he first walked through the gates at Franklin’s Gardens.

“It has been an up and down 10 years with injuries and selection, but I enjoy my rugby here and feel I am getting better as a player and as a person,” he said. “I still get nervous before games, but not massively so.

“Some boys are sick in bins, but I am pretty chilled. There will be some nerves because if you did not have any, you would be a bit worried – they make you ready. Then the game starts and away they go.”