Ludlam looking forward to facing a former Saints mentor at Allianz Park

Ludlam came through the ranks at Saints after learning plenty from Calum Clark, who was a key member of the double-winning side of 2013/14.

Clark made more than 100 appearances for Northampton after joining the club from Yorkshire Carnegie in 2010.

He eventually departed for Saracens in 2017 and will now hope to get some game time against Saints this weekend.

And Academy graduate Ludlam is looking forward to facing one of this old club-mates.

"Cal gave me loads of advice when I was coming through the ranks," Ludlam said.

"He was really good for me and it would be good to see him out there and to compete against him.

"I'm looking forward to the challenge."

Ludlam has become a key member of the Saints squad under boss Chris Boyd.

He was impressive once again last weekend as his all-action showing helped his side to a last-gasp 27-26 win against Bath at Franklin's Gardens.

It means Saints have now won four of their past five Gallagher Premiership games, and they sit fifth going into this weekend's match.

"The mood is pretty positive," said Ludlam, who has made 19 appearances this season.

"It wasn't the sort of performance we wanted last weekend but you need to be on the right end of those ones.

"We've been on the wrong end of those this season so it's nice to be on the right side of it.

"We're really looking forward to the weekend now.

"It's a massive challenge away from home.

"Saracens are a quality outfit, they're a top team in Europe and it's not going to be an easy game.

"But we've got a clear game plan and we'll be looking to execute that."