Bath prop David Flatman offers more views from the coal face in his latest column for The Independent, and he's not happy with jibes at his tiny feet.
"The thing is, the players are not lying. Twelve years ago, no matter what anybody said then, there were easier games. As the only non-international in a star-studded Saracens team, the week's preparation for Bedford at home was notably more relaxed than the week before against Wasps. We knew we would win, and we were right. But these days one would do well to spot an easy game.
"Today we face Leeds at Headingley. "Tough one, hey?" one reporter commented yesterday. What was I ever going to say to that? "Yes, I'd far rather have drawn Maidstone Under-8s, you know, to warm up on and boost the old confidence." Wherever the draw lands us, I am sure all the players in the Aviva Premiership (has a nice ring, that, though perhaps not as catchy as, say, the Twix Premiership – we can dream) are just gagging to get out there. This is, after all, our job, so now it just feels like time to work again.
"Pre-season is a particularly unrewarding time of year for the rugby player; all that hard yakka with very little to look forward to at the end of each week (unless, like me, you are lucky enough to have Saturday morning sessions too, due to a malfunctioning set of weighing scales). As much as saying it makes me want to cut out my own tongue, Stan Collymore was right: life feels empty when the buzz of the weekend's big match is removed. Granted, we do not all try to fill this void in countryside car parks; instead we just visualise the nice, sunny day when all our graft becomes worth it and we get to compete once more."
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