More confident this season than I was for the start of last.
Last season of the 4-in-a-row (2023-2024) it felt like we were running out of steam. We didn't look anything like a treble winning side and managed to somehow crawl over the finish line. It was glossed over with the CWC and USC wins, but for the most part we were pretty average, with cracks appearing. So going into the start of last season (2024-25) was not encouraging in the slightest.
This time last year I wasn't buoyed at all, which proved to be the case; by November all the optimism of the season had been sucked out. But this season, we look hungry, new recruits look ready to prove themselves. Established players who were admittedly poor last season look eager to prove their doubters and critics wrong. That's what we've missed, that fire, that focus. I think we got drunk off our own success from 23-24, now it feels very much 'back to business'.