The big interview: Tom Vickers talks to Saints and England ace Alex Coles

That is because as a teenager, Coles considered pursuing his cricket dream, but injuries hit, putting a stop to the idea that he could become a pace bowler.

"There was actually a period when I was 13 or 14 that I thought I might be able to go down the cricket route as a fast bowler," Coles explained.

"Then I got two stress fractures in my back in two consecutive years and that basically put that dream to bed, as well as the fact I couldn’t bat – there are a few reasons that fell flat!

"I just used to love sport, so I’d try to throw myself into anything.

"I think that piece of advice that people give to kids of doing multiple sports and as many different things as you can is so true because physically, and from a school point of view, it definitely just aids you going forward, in whichever sport you end up trying to specialise in."

Cricket wasn't actually Coles' main sport as a youngster though - and neither was rugby.

"I started out playing football, that was my main sport for ages, and then I picked up rugby as well," Arsenal fan Coles said.

"I moved all over the pitch (as a footballer), to be honest. I started in goal and I’d like to say I was fairly good in goal, but I got pretty bored.

"My coach at under-10s managed to persuade me to stay in goal by saying I could be on penalties for the year, so I played in goal but took the penalties, and then after that it wasn’t enough to keep me (in goal) and I said I’ve got to move out.

"I then played as a centre-back or a defensive midfielder, essentially. I saw myself as a bit of a John Stones character, but I was probably more Per Mertesacker!"

Coles' rugby journey started at Shelford RFC and he went on to join the Saints Academy.

He represented England at age grade level from Under-16s to Under-20s and earned his senior call-up in 2022, making his debut during the narrow 30-29 loss to Argentina.

He is now closing in on 150 appearances for Saints and has gone from a beanpole lock to a forward pack powerhouse who still possesses incredible athletic ability.

So how difficult has it been to balance adding size while still being able to get around the pitch at a rate any forward would be proud of?

"It’s been hard – I’ve sort of gone either side and got it wrong both ways, where I’ve been too light and then some of your contact work, your set-piece stuff takes a hit," explained the 26-year-old.

"Then I’ve gone the other way and – not very often, it was only after Covid, really – I’ve come back probably too heavy and I wasn’t moving so well.

"It’s a bit of a shame, I would like to be around 110kg because I’ve lost a bit of my top-end speed, being 120kg, but the reality is if you want to play international rugby and you want to be a second row, you’ve got to be in and around that 120kg area.

"I think the fitness stuff you can work on and keep topping that up because when you’re lighter that comes fairly naturally, then as you put on size you want to keep topping that up."

It's no coincidence that Coles is the only Saints player ever to win back to back Blakiston Challenges, prevailing in the gruelling pre-season test of strength and stamina in both 2021 and 2022.

"I’ve naturally been quite fit," he said.

"As a kid, I tended to be quite rangy and long, not very heavy and I’ve had to try and put some weight on.

"I’d still tend to say that I’ve not quite got that fast twitch that some of the other players have, that explosiveness, but I’ve got a fairly decent engine.

"I just try to get through as much work as I can, that’s my key job in the tight five and it’s nice when you get occasional moments, like in the Newcastle game or the game at Pau where you can stretch your legs a little bit. But mostly the engine is just there to hit rucks and chase kicks."

Coles scored a crucial try in that win at Newcastle Red Bulls earlier this season and he helped to create one for Alex Mitchell against Section Paloise in the Investec Champions Cup opener, showing his ability to get around the field and support his razor-sharp scrum-half.

"He (Mitchell) is an absolute joke, some of the stuff he pulls off," Coles said.

"There will be nothing going on, we’ll have lost all our attacking options and shape and he just pulls something out.

"My mantra is to follow him about as much as I can and pick up stuff off his shoulder.

"You’ve just got to pick your moments because there’s no way you’ll be able to track him for the whole game, but when you do end up in and around his area, I recommend to any players that play with him to just get on his shoulder.

"You’re always going to end up with little gaps because he’s so good at pulling defenders in and around him, and he gets us out of trouble so much of the time.

"It’s hard to say too much more good stuff about him, really, because he’s a proper world class player."

Coles is making his way towards those kind of tags, too, becoming a key man for club and country.

He scored twice for Saints during the Champions Cup final last season and was a mainstay for England as they completed a flawless autumn campaign in 2025, helping them to claim a memorable win against the All Blacks along the way.

"That was surreal," Coles said "I was fairly emotional after the game, actually, just because of the significance of it, in terms of not having beaten them (at Twickenham) for so many years.

"On the morning of the game, I was sort of reflecting on my rugby journey. It’s not something I’ve done very often but thinking about when I first started playing, imagining telling myself that I would be doing this in so many years’ time.

"I look back to the last time that England beat them in 2012 and I was on a school trip in Year 7 or 8 to Newcastle to play rugby.

"It was emotional, that feeling, it was such a special occasion and to come out with a win was just awesome."

Coles got to experience that England success alongside one of his closest friends as Fraser Dingwall was also in the Red Rose team that day.

He said: "Fraser Dingwall is someone who’s from around Cambridge, like I am, and even though he was in the year above, we were playing together in the academy and coming through the whole way.

"He’s someone I’ve known for years and years and shared so much stuff with, then being out there for that game and it being so special for him as well as someone who’s also had to fight hard and work hard for his opportunities. It just really added to the whole occasion."

Coles loved his time with England, both during the autumn and the successful summer tour of Argentina.

"It’s hard to compare the summer tour and then the autumn, but they’ll both definitely be my number one and two favourite campaigns," he said.

"Obviously, winning helps and then being able to actually play a proper role, in terms of minutes on the pitch, has just been awesome.

"It can be hard and frustrating at times being on the edge and in the training squads, getting the odd sub appearance and getting a few minutes here and there, to prove yourself and earn the trust of the coaches.

"So, to be able to put a few games back-to-back has been great and I’m realistic because there’s a lot of talent in the second row in this country; Ollie Chessum, Maro Itoje, George Martin has been injured, Charlie Ewels is playing really well, Nick Isiekwe, Arthur Clark. There’s just so many good locks.

"My goal was just to, while I had the opportunity, try to take it with both hands and show what I can do, and I felt like I managed to do that to the best of my ability.

"I’ll have to see where that leads me now, but I’m just glad to have had the chance."