Saints Q&A: Tom Vickers talks to departing CEO Mark Darbon

The 45-year-old has overseen a huge turnaround in fortunes since arriving in Northampton seven years ago, culminating in the Gallagher Premiership title in the season just gone.

We sat down with Darbon to discuss his time at Saints and his new role here...

Q: How did the new job come about?

A: "I was approached about the role by a headhunter a few months ago. They asked if I was interested and it's been funny, because I love Saints so much I've always batted away approaches in the past, but this was a really unique role within sport.

“For the first time really, I was excited about something else and thought I would give it a go.

“Then there was a process to go through, as there often is with these things, and it was after the final that I had to make some decisions."

Q: If Saints hadn't won the final, could you have potentially not left?

A: "We'll never know!

"It would have felt different moving on had we not won the final. That would have felt like the job hadn't been done properly - and that's not to say the job finishes when you win the final, but it would have been something that had been missing from my tenure - and I think that would have hurt.

“Now I've got a chunk of time before I leave in November and then it will be others who lead the charge forwards, but we've got to make sure we build on that success and not allow it to be a one off.”

Q: Do you think you've become more emotionally invested in Saints than you thought you would be when you arrived?

A: “Yes, 100 per cent.

“I think that's been one of my biggest surprises actually, this place has really got under my skin.

“It's become a big part of my personal life as well as my working life. My family love the place and we'll find that adjustment hard. We'll really miss it.

“But I'm really pleased I'll be staying on as a member of the board and that means we'll maintain that connection and hopefully it means I can offer some help to build on the success of this season.

“And selfishly it means that my family and I will still be regular attendees at the Gardens when we can.”

Q: Have you stayed at the club longer than you envisaged when you arrived?

A: “It's always hard to predict that when you start a role.

“I was really confident I was going to enjoy it, and I was confident that it would be challenging and that keeps you motivated so I hadn't really put a timeframe on it.

“At the same time, if you look at the typical tenure of chief execs in elite sports clubs, they're often a bit shorter than the time I've done here at Saints - I think it will be seven and a half years when I leave.

“Almost all the other Premiership clubs have had at least two CEOs in the time I've been here at Saints - not all of them but most of them.

“I hope I've given it a good run and I'm proud of what we've achieved on and off the pitch but now it's time for a new challenge for me and time for a new voice to take the club forward, too.”

Q: Do you think it's taken a few years off your life being at the Saints?

A: “There's been ups and downs, that's for sure!

“But if you're passionate about something and you enjoy it then the time moves pretty quickly.

“I think about some of the things we've been through, whether that's trying to navigate through the pandemic or the first year where there was a lot of restructuring and change both within our rugby setup and our commercial setup, the challenges presented by the loss of other Premiership clubs.

“There's consistently been stuff we've been working through and there have been ups and downs along the way, but all of that comes together to mean it's been a really enjoyable seven years and when I move on from this being the day job, hopefully I'm leaving the club in a strong position.

“I'm really confident that the people here will take it on to bigger and better things in the future.”

Q: When Chris Boyd was leaving in 2022, there were a few questions about the club's decision to promote other coaches, so how happy are you that the choice has paid off in such style?

A: “It's one of the things I'm most proud of: some of the people growth we've seen at the club during my time here.

“Getting that coaching group right was a huge focus for Chris Boyd and myself.

“And from very early in Chris's tenure, we were talking about what that group might look like long after he may have moved on. Not because we were predicting his departure, but because we were trying to be thoughtful and on the front foot about it all, in the same way that we were looking at the squad in front of us for multiple years and trying to bring those various pieces together.

“Seeing Dows (Phil Dowson), (Sam) Vesty, James Craig and Ferg (Matt Ferguson) all step up and deliver the success they have this year is really, really rewarding.

"Were we confident the transition would go well? We were.

“We saw within that group of coaches a really attractive skillset that we thought could lead the club to success, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't some nervousness too.

“Whenever you make decisions like that, there's always an element of nervousness but we were really confident in the group that we had and we saw the potential in them.

“We knew we had a squad that was heading in the right direction, too. Before this year, we'd been in three of the last five Premiership semi-finals so we'd been making progress so we thought that transition was really appropriate.

“I'm just so proud of what Dows and Sam have done in leading that talented coaching group.”

Q: It was well known that Saints were one of the best clubs at keeping their staff happy during the tough times of Covid, so how satisfying is it to see those people deliver now and the decisions pay off?

A: “We've got good people at Saints, first and foremost, so when you've got good people, it makes orchestrating the organisation day to day much easier.

“We've tried really hard, whether that's internally during difficult times like Covid or externally with our supporter base to be really transparent and proactive in our communication.

“It's something the club was lacking previously or it had fallen away a little bit. I don't think it was rocket science but it was an important strategic decision for us to make to say we were always going to be proactive and front foot on the communication.

“That transparency during the pandemic really helped because we were able to sit down with our players, have a sensible, grown-up conversation and say 'these are the things we're wrestling with and here's decisions we therefore need to make'.

“It wasn't just the players but the staff more broadly, and the way they bought into those decisions and carried on working really diligently will live with me for a really long time.

“It made my job and the job of the board much easier, as did the fact our supporters were so generous during the pandemic. So many of our supporters, in particular our season ticket holders essentially donated money into the club. They didn't claim money back for their season ticket which could be utilised and that had a massive impact on our ability to navigate some of the turbulence we were facing.

“Whether it's been the people internally at the club or our supporter base and partners, I will really, really miss everyone associated with Saints as I move on.”

Q: How did it feel when the club finally got over the line to win the Premiership?

A: “To be honest, it's been a feeling of relief as much as elation.

“We knew we had a good shot this year and when the guys had played as well as they had done through the majority of the season and you finish top of the table, it would have been really frustrating to not come away with the silverware.

“We knew we had a shot but you've got to get it over the line and having put ourselves in that position, it just felt like enormous relief.

“It sunk in a little bit the next day during the victory parade, when you just saw how much it meant to so many people across Northampton.

“We've enjoyed the celebrations a lot, but my overarching emotion is relief.

“Then actually the sort of impatient side of you kicks in. It's really important to celebrate your wins and it's been 10 years since we last won the title so we want to enjoy that - we've been enjoying it and will continue to enjoy it, we make no apology for that - but at the same time we have to now build on the success.

“We can't allow what happened last time the club won the title to happen again.

“Yes, they had a very strong season the year after they won the title, finishing top of the league and then losing in the play-offs, but thereafter there was a bit of a fall away in terms of results and outcomes so we need to make sure our success is sustainable into the future.

“A lot of my focus into November will be on that and the club is pulling together to ensure that's the case, too.”

Q: The club is obviously losing some big players this summer even though you tried your best to keep them so in terms of finances, how much scope is there to keep the players you want beyond next season?

A: “There's definitely scope.

“I don't think it's a secret that in the past few seasons we've not been one of the highest spenders in the league - far from it in fact.

“But what we've got really good at is growing a nucleus of young, homegrown players - 70 per cent have come through our Academy in one shape or form - and we've built a side around those guys who have stepped up and really delivered, many of whom are now playing for England or other international nations.

“We're really proud of the homegrown component to our squad and then we've got to make sure we make the right choices to supplement that group where we need to - and there's definitely scope for us to do so.

“Will we miss the likes of Courtney (Lawes), Luds (Lewis Ludlam) and Alex Waller? Of course. They bring not just exceptional capability but they bring experience to the group as well, and their departures added an extra emotional dimension to the run-in. We wanted to send those guys off with a title to reward their efforts not just this season but over many, many years.

"But as we look forward, we're excited by some of the other signings we've made, we're excited by the group that we've got and we therefore expect to be challenging and in the mix next season, and I'm sure that will continue to be the case moving forward.”

Q: How much of a say will you have in who takes over from you?

A: Ultimately it will be the decision of the board, and the board are doing a lot of work on that at the moment.

“I think they will ask for my view - we've always had a really good relationship between the board and the executive team.

“It's a really attractive role within sport. The club's in a good place, there's some interesting times ahead, it's challenging but rewarding and I'm really confident we'll make a brilliant choice.”

Q: How much are you looking forward to your new role?

A: “I'm really looking forward to it.

“It was a really difficult decision to move on from Saints and I'm changing sports so I'm sure I've got a lot to learn as I make that transition.

“But golf is a sport I love so I'm excited to be working within that sector and The R&A is a really prestigious and reputable organisation so it's a job and an organisation I've looked at for a while and always wondered whether there may be a route there in the future.

“I'm eager to get going and there's definitely some challenges in the sport of golf at the moment that we need to work through in order to ensure that game is growing and thriving and sustainable for the future.

“There's lots that I've learned at Saints that will stand me in good stead but I'm delighted to be maintaining a connection back here in Northampton even though we'll be moving up north in the next few months.”