Those were the words of Philippe Saint-Andre as he was unveiled as director of rugby at the tail-end of last season…and those are the words that has Sale fans, no matter what their opinions on the arrival of the Frenchman and subsequent departure of Jim Mallinder, looking forward to what promises to be an interesting season.

No one needs reminding that our last campaign ended in frustration after frustration as we were first beaten in the Powergen Cup final by Newcastle then lost out in the Wildcard Final, consigning us to life in the Parker Pen Challenge Cup this season.

Since then ‘Sir Jim’, and eight players, have departed but the revolving door has not been working just one way with Kingsley Jones added to the coaching staff and no fewer than seven (eight if John Payne’s mooted move goes through) players recruited. Probably the ‘headline act’ of those is England prop Trevor Woodman, who Saint-Andre is familiar with from his days at Gloucester, and the prospect of ‘Dougie’ and Andrew Sheridan propping with Andy Titterell – surely the most underrated hooker in England (outside of EP) – between them is a mouth-watering one.

Obviously Big Ted is still on a learning curve at three, and Barry Stewart will therefore see plenty of game-time, but Saint-Andre has clearly seen enough from the big man to suggest that his long-term future could be there.

The two Sebastiens – Bruno and Chabal – also add strength to a pack that has, with all due respect to the boys involved, been our weakness in recent seasons. Chabal in particular has the attributes to succeed in the Zurich Prem and looks like a more disciplined version of the departed Alex Sanderson. No handbags, no backchat just plenty of powerful ball carrying and big tackles. Bravo Sebastien!

Christian Day and Magnus Lund are also becoming integral parts of the first-team squad, continuing our policy of promoting youngsters at just the right time, and add depth and no small amount of ability behind the front row. The real test will be whether the front eight can gel quickly enough and be strong enough in the tight to provide the foundation on which probably the best backline in English rugby can gorge.

As if having the likes of Steve Hanley, Mark Cueto, new skipper Jason Robinson, Bryan Redpath, Charlie Hodgson and Mike Hercus were not enough, Saint-Andre has added Robert Todd, Sililo Martens and Josh Taumalolo and is still attempting to recruit Payne.

All bring their own qualities to the club but what is quite apparent is that running rugby will certainly not be sacrificed in favour of winning at all costs.

So what does the new season have in store for the Sharks?

Well, with a run of good luck on the injury front and a pack that gels quickly and hits the ground running, a place in the top three is not out of our reach.

However last season proved just how costly injuries can be…and how important it is to have players, coaches and management all singing from the same hymn sheet.

The likes of Leicester – our first opponents of the new season, Newcastle and Wasps look particularly strong ahead of the new campaign and will surely be the frontrunners as the bookmakers are rarely wrong.

But PSA has recruited sensibly over the summer and despite some big losses, our squad looks more than capable of competing. The problem will again be stringing the wins together over a period of time and it is that that leads me to believe we will again be left fighting for a Heineken Cup place come the final weeks of the season.

Of course, the Parker Pen Challenge Cup could be our salvation, and our run to the Powergen Cup final last season – including THAT win over Leicester – will give great confidence that in one-off games we can match anyone.

Saint-Andre is still in the early days of his spell as DOR and the departure of Jim has certainly not helped his cause as fans and pundits alike will be looking at how he fares in the wake of a Sale legend.

But the words used as the introduction of this piece echo the sentiments of the majority and show he is determined to go about things the Sale way.

Sit back and enjoy the ride.

Bon Chance Philippe! Allez les Requins!