Wellens: Saints' recruitment, first year as coach and Tonga

He explains what the departure of Will Hopoate could mean recruitment-wise, how the senior players will be driving force to start a new cycle of success and a personal reflection on his first year as a senior coach.

MC:  James Roby has gone – but you still have Jonny Lomax, Tommy Makinson, Alex Walmsley, Mark Percival as older players who have won plenty, but who will be very keen that this is not it the end of the winning cycle?

PW: With the likes of Robes and Louie moving on and a number of players leaving it feels like it’s the end of the cycle in some respect, but same time it can also be the start of another.

We don't need to wait two, three, four or five years to start another cycle. What is really important is that we look to start a new one next year.

We have a couple of new faces coming in, a number of people graduating up from Academy level and there's a lot to be excited about.

And the pleasing thing for me is that the players you have mentioned, plus Joe Batchelor, Morgan Knowles and Matty Lees, have been around a long time, and will be the driving force behind that.

MC: Does Will Hopoate’s departure present a recruitment opportunity given he frees up cap and quota space?

PW: What we have got there is cap space and a quota spot available.

Conversations are ongoing now as to where we can improve the squad and which areas need strengthening.

We have definitely not ruled out the possibility of bringing someone in, but obviously it is about identifying the right person, identifying the right player in the right position for us. So those conversations are ongoing.

It is a matter of seeing how they develop over the coming weeks or even months.

MC: Are you looking in the three-quarters specifically for recruitment?

PW: Potentially – it is an option for us as losing someone like Will who can play full back, centre and wing presents a sizeable hole to fill.

We have had a number of players who have done a really good job this year.

Jon Bennison showed up in big games and Tee Ritson in his first year at full time has been a really competent player in his first year.

We have options but what is probably the most important thing is whoever we bring in or in whatever position it is, it's going to improve us.

We won’t be making signings for the sake of it – it has to be absolutely the right person and the right player.

We've always been first and foremost about retaining our best players, particular players who have come through our junior system. That's really important.

When we're looking at strengthening our squad I look to our reserves and Academy to see if there is anyone there to do the job we require.

If not, then we look to recruitment.

It's something we've always got our eyes open on in that respect, but it is a competitive marketplace particularly if you look at the way the salary cap in the NRL keeps increasing, and obviously there is an extra team in the NRL this year and looking to expand again in the coming years.

So it's going to be even more challenging to get the right players, that's why it’s important we continue to work hard with our junior systems to develop our own players because that's been the cornerstone of our success in recent years.

MC: How has this year been for yourself, a young coach in charge of a your hometown team? It can be tougher when it is your home town and you're living and breathing it 24/7?

PW: I have really enjoyed it but it has been challenging. I always expected it to be challenging but when I spoke to a few more experienced coaches at the start of the year at the .year a lot of them said that you can never really know what to expect until you actually walk in the shoes.

You can get as much advice as possible, but you have got to go and live it.

That's probably so true because the experience doing it and the challenges, it is very time consuming with a lot of things coming your way at different points, and there's not a lot of switch off time.

So that comes with the territory – and I am not saying that as a negative at all, that's just part and parcel of the job.

So it's a challenge that I have really enjoyed.

When it started the way it did over in Penrith, we are a team that has won four titles on the spin, there's not a lot of margin for error and we understand that.

But at the same time I have been around the game long enough to know that no team has a God-given right to win all the time and no team will win all the time.

I see my job as one where I have to continue to drive standards. I'll continue to try and help the team and the club improve, help individual players within that improve.

And that's exactly the same challenge we've got next year.

What I can see as being a local St Helens boy, living in the town, I have had such fantastic support, personally around me at the club from the players and staff, but also externally when you're going around the town.

People are very supportive particularly during those periods of the season where things were not going well.

It's very easy for people to get frustrated and perhaps voice their concerns in a different way, but there's been very little of that.

I understand that it happens at times, and that comes with the territory. But on the main, everyone has been really supportive and I'm grateful for that.

PART 1 of the Paul Wellens Saints Q&A

MC: The link up with Kristian Woolf and Tonga is that a blessing after the season’s end – something a little bit different for you?

PW: Kristian asked me to help out earlier on in the year. I see him as someone who I have a huge amount of respect for and someone who I really enjoyed working with.

So that appeals, as did doing something a bit different. I have worked with England since 2013 now - it's been a long time.

To work with a different group of players from a different background and a different culture is something that I felt would benefit me as a coach, but also it excited me to do that, particularly having been around likes of Will Hopoate, Agnatius and Konrad at club level and seeing what playing for Tonga means to them.

I found it appealing to be a part of it and see what it's all about and actually to work with a group of players who I don't know who I haven't come across before is going to challenge me as a coach but again be a wonderful experience.

It's going to be an exciting few weeks.