'Big boots to fill' but summer signing West is loving the challenge with Saints

With club legend Alex Waller having retired during the summer, West was drafted in to add his experience to a front row that includes talented looseheads Manny Iyogun and Tarek Haffar.

West, who is 28 years old, came through the ranks at Wasps, where he spent more than a decade before brief spells with Leicester Tigers and, most recently, Saracens.

But he is now setting up home at Saints, helping the Gallagher Premiership champions to replace Waller.

"I played against him a few times and we actually played together with the Barbarians a couple of years ago," West said.

"I know him well enough and they are big boots to fill but I'm enjoying the challenge.

"I'm loving it here. I'm settling in really well and it's an easy place to settle into.

"The coaches, the lads, I want to stay away from the cliches, but I mean it when I say it's a really easy place to settle into and I'm really enjoying it.

"I was at Wasps from 15 to 26 so that was a big part of my life because I became a man there.

"Leicester came at a tough time after Wasps went so that filled a gap but this club has got that family feel like I had at Wasps.

"When I met Dows (Saints boss Phil Dowson) and the coaches to look to sign, I had a really good feeling about this place.

"And from week one of pre-season, it's been really easy.

"It speaks volumes of the environment and the lads that are here are a really close-knit group, but not in the sense that they don't want people to come in. They're very welcoming."

With West, Iyogun and Haffar to call upon, Saints are certainly well stocked at loosehead this season.

And West said: "It's competitive training wise, everyone wants to get better and it's an easy thing to push yourself when you've got other lads in your position wanting to do the same.

"I've got a few years on Manny and Tarek even though I'm 28 so that's pretty crazy.

"They're keeping me on my toes and keeping me young!"

West got his first taste of Gardens game time last Saturday as he came on during the second half of the 54-26 pre-season defeat to Leinster.

"I've always enjoyed playing here,” he said.

"The pitch is easily the best in the league, by a mile, especially if you compare it to a rainy Friday night in Bath in January.

"We had a sample of the crowd support last weekend and it's only going to get better so it's amazing and I'm loving it."

West's move to Saints was sewn up during last season and he watched on with glee as the club claimed the Premiership title.

"I knew I was coming here reasonably early so it was good to keep an eye on them and see how boys were getting on," he said.

"I was even trying to work out how I was going to fit in and get going.

"There is that emphasis on open, free-flowing rugby and playing what you see, but there's a massive amount of respect for the set piece, which is amazing because it's the fundamental job of the front row, second row to provide ball for the athletes like Freemo (Tommy Freeman) and Sleights (Ollie Sleightholme) to do their job, get the ball, score tries and make everyone in the stands love it."

The first competitive game for West with Saints will come at Bath next Friday.

And he said: "That's going to be a big one, a replay of the final.

"Especially with how they're set up pack wise, it's going to be a massive set-piece battle down there.

"Looking at how they forged their path to the final last year compared to other teams who got into the semis, it was definitely that they were focusing on their set piece and that was their point of difference.

"It's going to be an exciting set piece battle and we'll definitely be up for it."