Conor Gilsenan is excited about this season in the Gallagher Premiership, but understands the size of the task in hand. With pre-season well under way at Hazelwood, the back-rower explained that there is a lot to be excited about in the coming campaign.

“We’ve made some amazing signings, probably higher profile individuals and calibre players than we ever have before so naturally that’s very exciting. We want to be playing in the top league and against the best teams.”

“Pre-season is a tough time of the year for a professional rugby player but it’s also a good time as you tend not to have too many niggles, you’re making progress all the time.”

The Irishman joined London Irish in 2014 and has amassed 66 appearances for the club since his debut, and has captained the side in Premiership Cup and Championship Cup fixtures. He recently put pen to paper and signed a contract extension to stay at the club.

Looking back on last season, Conor has some fond memories of a great campaign and hopes that the club can echo their Championship success in the Premiership, but he’s under no illusions of how tough the challenge is.

“I enjoyed the day we beat Ealing last season to lift the league trophy. I missed out on the final last time we got promoted with an injury so it was nice to take the field and lift some silverware.”

“I’ve had some pretty tough times in the Premiership but I’m pretty excited for what the future holds.”

As the season draws ever closer, ‘Gilly’ is looking forward to some of London Irish’s biggest games of the season.

“The St Patrick’s Day game is always special, every time I’ve played in it, it’s always been a pretty great day for the club. All these days are exciting but they’re only nice when you’re winning so we have to keep grafting. As a team the number one thing is to be competitive, I guess number one goal is to stay in the Premiership and be as competitive as possible.”

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