We want to put things right, says Bristol's Winters

Roy Winters says there is a buzz of expectation in the Bristol camp as the players prepare to fight for an immediate return to the Guinness Premiership.

The Bristol Rugby players are nearing the end of their first five-week section of pre-season training – and experienced lock Winters has been impressed by the collective attitude of the squad.

Bristol were relegated in April after four seasons in the top division of English rugby – and Winters says there is only one focus within the squad: Promotion at the first attempt.

The 33-year-old said: "The mood in the camp is very positive and what happened last season has really focused everyone's minds.

"There's a real buzz around the place, and everyone who was here last year – and even those who weren't – are desperate to put right what went wrong. And the only way we can do that is to get Bristol back into the Premiership.

"The focus at the moment is to get ourselves in as good a condition as possible to give ourselves as good a chance as possible of being promoted."

Bristol have lost several key men since the end of last season, with Mark Regan and Matt Salter retiring and Dan Ward-Smith, Shaun Perry, Joe El Abd, David Lemi and Robert Sidoli moving on to pastures new.

But Winters has been impressed by the way new leaders have started to emerge within the dressing room.

"When you have characters like Matt Salter and Ronnie, who are pretty influential guys, sometimes it is quite difficult for the others to get anything across – especially with Ronnie," joked Winters.

"So maybe it has been made a little easier for some other guys to have their say.

"It's not just the older guys, though; we are seeing the Arscotts, Mark Irish and Wayne Thompson – all relative youngsters – bring their twopenn'orth to the table. And I think some of them are just as influential as the so-called senior players.

"Some players are more experienced than others, but we are all on the same level and we are certainly seeing some new leaders emerging."

The first five-week block of pre-season training has been largely dominated by strength and conditioning work.

And Winters has paid tribute to Tom McLaughlin, who is taking his first full pre-season as the club's head of physical preparation.

"This is something like the 15th year I've been lucky enough to do pre-season as a professional – and every strength and conditioning coach has their own way of doing it," said Winters.

"It has been a breath of fresh air with Tom McLaughlin this year. He has kept it interesting, which is not always easy to do, and a lot of the sessions have been short and intense, which is the way we want to play this season."