JONO Lance says he feels like a “new signing” this summer for Worcester Warriors after the last campaign’s injury woe.

The Australian fly-half described the longer pre-season due to the World Cup as “perfect” for his preparations and also gave his thoughts on Warriors’ 2019-20 targets.

Worcester make a competitive start on Saturday, September 21, when Leicester Tigers visit Sixways in the Premiership Cup.

Here rugby reporter Geoff Berkeley speaks to former Western Force and Queensland Reds back Lance, 29, about the time ahead.

HOW IS PRE-SEASON GOING?

They are all pretty similar in some ways but different in others.

I think for us to have the opportunity to train as a full squad for an extended period of time with the delayed start to the season is something that has allowed us to specifically control four-week blocks.

I wouldn’t say it has been fun but the toughest stuff of those four-week blocks is probably over and it is exciting to now get really into the rugby.

DO YOU WELCOME A LONGER PRE-SEASON CONSIDERING LAST SEASON’S INJURY WOE?

For me it has been perfect. I almost feel like I am a new signing at the club with how last year went. It was very frustrating.

It’s probably the best I have felt in a few years which is really exciting going into the pre-season, getting through training and starting to feel like I am going into training sessions trying to get better and make the guys around me better instead of just trying to get through training sessions.

It has been going really well.

HOW FRUSTRATING WAS LAST SEASON?

They all sort of manifested themselves from that one back injury that hog-tied the whole year. It was definitely very frustrating.

But in saying that it was also a time for me to step back from rugby, re-evaluate and do a lot of things in my mind and I think I did that.

I definitely came out of it with a lot of motivation to attack this year and go forward into the next few years of my rugby career.

As much as this pre-season has been a longer one I have really enjoyed it because I am really looking forward to ripping in this year.

MORE ON PREPARATIONS FOR THIS SEASON…

It was a tough start to the pre-season, there has been a lot of running but as I say we have got into the rugby side of things.

Training has been very high quality and I think the way the guys are leaving the training field excited but also when training finishes doing extras, that’s good to see.

We need everyone to be constantly improving themselves to attack the year and I think another aspect is that the club doesn’t have too many guys away for the World Cup which gives us a good opportunity to have a full squad, attacking each other for a whole pre-season and ripping in with each other so there are definitely positives to that.

It just means that we really need to take the season on the front foot.

WHAT ARE WARRIORS’ AMBITIONS THIS SEASON?

Obviously you want to be in the top six and then play in the main European competition going forward.

The club has spoken a lot about that but I think for us as players we have got to concentrate on the next few weeks so that when the Premiership Cup games start we are still very competitive with each other but ready to tackle other people instead of each other at training.

IS THERE MUCH OPTIMISM AT THE CLUB?

I think after the successes of last year in terms of the record-equalling (league) wins there is definitely a lot of optimism.

Saying that when I got here last year everyone was optimistic and that probably led to the team having one of their most successful years as a club.

Everyone is optimistic at this time of year but I do think that through that competitiveness in the playing squad we can do a lot of good things and just keep driving each other.

There is a lot of optimism.