When David Strettle crossed the try line in the final seconds of our game against London Wasps at Twickenham last weekend, there was a sick sense of deja vu.

With Saracens losing by a point, the TMO was promptly called upon for his expert opinion and, much like the brutal closing seconds of last year’s final, we stood around helplessly as the grounding of the ball was dissected from every imaginable angle….

But let me take you take you back a few weeks to the Lollapalooza music festival, where the team got together after a brutal week’s training in a baking hot Chicago.

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You see, at Saracens we do things a little differently, and opportunities to experience events like one of the world’s biggest music festivals is part of the package.

The deal is quite simple really: we are looked after unbelievably well by the club and in return we are expected to work unbelievably hard.

Part of our mantra is to enjoy each other’s company and to make memories beyond the battles on the rugby field.

So, with the likes of Kings of Leon and Eminem for company, we did just that, had fun. Lots of it. There are always hundreds of small conversations on these trips between the team and we believe these things build relationships and strengthen bonds.

So when the final whistle blew on Saturday and Strettle’s try was awarded, securing us a five-point victory, it wasn’t so much the win that pleased us but rather the tenacity to fight back from an eight-point deficit and run in a 70m try to win a game in which we were not at our best.

It showed character in spades and I truly believe that the more you care about the people you work with, the harder you are prepared to fight for them when times get tough.

In what is bound to be another gruelling premiership season, times will certainly get tough but if we can consistently show the same obstinacy in the face of difficulty we will be extremely competitive.

The fight for the mantle of the top of English Rugby is becoming fiercer every year. It’s in these first few weeks that the ‘experts’ choose their favourites and speculate as to who might produce the goods this time around. I’m always loathe to enter this debate.

The fact is that there are a lot of teams who can win it. I will say that with a league as gruelling as the Aviva Premiership often the strongest squad prevails in the long run and coping with injury setbacks can be a huge determining factor as the season wears on.

Saracens have recruited well in the off-season and have secured the services of some world-class rugby players. In order to add some international diversity to our highly academic front row we have brought in Argentinian Juan Figallo and former Western Force stalwart Keiran Longbottom.

Both players have impressed with their ability to do more than just mix it up in the dark arts of scrummaging. They are great with ball in hand and have really embraced the defensive and attacking philosophies at the club.

I was mildly concerned when Keiran confessed to spending his first weekend in London at a local butterfly sanctuary… but he assures me his interests do extend beyond the boundaries of Lepidoptera.

Jim Hamilton, who has been capped 57 times by Scotland and has more clubs in his bag than Nick Faldo, needs very little introduction to British rugby fans.

He is an incredibly destructive force on the pitch and personally I’m looking forward to seeing his name alongside mine on a team sheet rather than in the opposing column. Mike Ellery is another top talent who has impressed hugely for the England sevens team.

On a personal note, the opportunity to lead the club this season is an incredible honour. I love being part of an organisation that values its people above all else, and to go to work every day for a team that has given so much to me is truly an honour.

I am also incredibly fortunate to have a wealth of leaders and experience to lean on and I am really looking forward to making the most of these relationships and working with guys like Kelly Brown, Charlie Hodgson and Owen Farrell, not to mention my great mates who are still flying the South African flag high in the the UK: Ernst Joubert, Neil de Kock and my old Durban primary school hooker and captain, Brad Barritt.

This year will be long and tough but, if we continue to work and fight for each other and the values of a club we truly believe in, we will succeed in making memories that will last long after the next 12 months are forgotten. I look forward to keeping you all updated.