Chairman Hewitt tells Saints fans to expect more good news on signings

Dylan Hartley and Courtney Lawes were part of a seven-strong group to commit their futures to the Franklin’s Gardens club on Wednesday.

New deals for Calum Clark, Alex Waller, Ethan Waller, Gareth Denman and James Craig were also announced.

Saints are keen to hold on to as many of last season’s double-winning squad as possible and with more renewals in the offing, Hewitt is a happy man.

He said: “It’s important we retain as many players as we can and continue with this fantastic team spirit we’ve got at the moment.

“Where we can add in to any gaps that we’ve got, we want players who can buy into the team spirit and fit into the team and carry on that journey of success we keep talking about.

“We’ll be making another announcement next week. We’ve done forwards this time and we’ll do some backs next week.

“We’ve done the bulk of the signings again before Christmas, which is what we did last year. There will then just be one or two announcements we’ll make next year as we add in to any gaps and other discussions we’re having as well.”