Wood gives update on his Saints contract situation

The flanker has hit the number of minutes needed this season to make sure he stays for at least one more campaign at Franklin's Gardens.

Wood has been a mainstay of the Saints side in 2019/20, starting in 18 of the club's 23 matches in all competitions.

The 33-year-old has been in fine form and the fans' favourite will now continue to contribute to the Saints cause for at least another year.

"I had to earn this season year this year," explained Wood, who signed a new deal at Saints in February 2019.

"My contract was kind of a year plus one and that was to be mutually agreed, firstly based on playing time.

"I could confirm it by playing enough minutes otherwise I would have had to sit down with the club and decide what would happen. That would have come down to injuries and what other options they had available.

"But I've played enough now to confirm I will definitely be here next year and now it's a case of how well I hold up, how well I manage to play and justify going again.

"I've always said I would get out while the going's good and that I wouldn't play myself into the ground or comprimise my long-term health for the sake of an extra year or whatever if my body was no longer up to it or the mind wasn't willing.

"But at the same time it seems crazy to step down while you are playing well and the going's good.

"If I manage to get through another season next year and I'm playing well, it will be a very difficult decision to to voluntarily step out of it.

"I'd love to be in a position where I could continue to play, probably a little less than I have this year.

"That all comes down to managing the squad and getting lucky with injuries and everything else."

But Wood insists he hadn't thought too much about the prospect of getting a new deal, insisting his focus was always on playing well during the current campaign.

"It was always a target to get to (the number of minutes needed for a new deal) but my philosophy on it really was that all I have to worry about was playing well," he said.

"I wanted to fulfil a positive role within the squad, outside of game day making sure I'm a good influence on everyone, being a good team player setting high standards and everything else.

"In that case, I was always confident Boydy (Saints boss Chris Boyd) would see that in me and reward it and want me around.

"At the end of the day, if he doesn't want me around, I don't want a piece of paper that says I've got to stay if I'm not earning it and people don't want me around.

"You've got to earn it and it's a self-fulfiling thing because if I was playing well and enjoying it, they would want me to stay."