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Van Poortvliet vows Leicester will chase title after Northampton's Twickenham triumph stung

Leicester Tigers scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet says watching rivals Northampton Saints lift the Premiership title at Twickenham — after beating Leicester 45-31 in the semi-finals — left a bitter taste, and insists the Tigers have the squad to go one better this season.

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Van Poortvliet vows Leicester will chase title after Northampton's Twickenham triumph stung
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Jack van Poortvliet has admitted that watching Northampton Saints celebrate a Gallagher Premiership title at Twickenham was a painful experience, and says Leicester Tigers are determined to turn that frustration into motivation as the new season approaches.

Saints eliminated Leicester 45-31 in the Premiership semi-finals before going on to claim the title, and the Tigers scrum-half made no attempt to hide how much that sequence of events hurt. “If you see anyone lift the Prem, especially the team which beats you in the semi-final, it does leave a bitter taste in your mouth,” Van Poortvliet said. “But we want to win it for ourselves and not just to stop someone else.”

The 25-year-old, who is in the final year of his Welford Road contract, pointed to a squad he believes is capable of going all the way. “We have a real winning mentality in this squad and fell short last time. But now it’s about delivering it and, when I look around the dressing room, I’m confident we have the squad to win it.”

Van Poortvliet has experienced the sharp end of knockout rugby more than most, losing two semi-finals and a final during his career, though Leicester did claim the Premiership Rugby Cup last season. “You always feel hurt at losing a semi-final,” he said. “But we also know how good it feels to win it, and we are going to chase that feeling.”

The England international also pointed to a coaching overhaul as a source of renewed optimism. New additions Craig Childs, Rod Seib, Craig Newby and Freddie Burns have joined Geoff Parling’s staff ahead of the campaign, and Van Poortvliet says their arrival has sharpened the club’s sense of direction.

“Those coaches have brought in their ideas and methods. We have real clarity going into this year of what is needed,” he said. “We did a lot of good things to get where we did last time, but, clearly, we have a lot to do still to get to where we want to go.”

Leicester open their Premiership season against Saracens at the end of the month.

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