Shelford head coaches Charlie Baker and Miles Anderson keen to introduce new playing style for 2024/25 Regional 1 South East campaign

While they are setting no ‘concrete goals’ for the 2024/25 season, Shelford will be working towards laying some solid foundations over the coming months.

It was back in March of this year that the Peacocks announced the appointment of Charlie Baker and Miles Anderson – veterans of almost 500 combined appearances for the club – as joint head coaches.

The pair have spent the summer putting the squad through its paces with the goal of implementing a new style of play – one that leans more on the collective rather than individual moments to pick up positive results.

It will take some time for that work to bear fruit on a consistent basis, and as such, Baker believes that it may not be until the next campaign where it all comes together.

Nevertheless, ahead of their Regional 1 South East opener at Letchworth Garden City on Saturday (7 September), Baker is still expecting his side to be competitive.

He said: “We came back a couple of weeks earlier than most teams because we want to make changes to the way we play.

“There’s still lots to learn and because of that this season might be a bit of a transition in some ways.

“In the past we’ve had good individual players and we’ve relied on them. Louie Tang, for example, has pulled us out of many holes and won us games on his own.

“That’s a great thing to have, but we want to try and bring a bit more shape to our game where we’re not so reliant on Louie and some of the other players.

“We’re under no illusions that it will take time and nobody is saying we’re going to have a storming season and win the league.

“Success for us will be putting together a good brand of rugby that people enjoy watching. We’re also keen to give some young players plenty of game time and so it might not be until next season that we really kick on with some concrete goals.

“But with the players we have in the group, we’re capable of competing with any of the sides in the league. It will be tough and there has been some good recruitment across the league, but I think we’ll still pick up some good results.”