Back looking for swift safety cushion as club eyes progress

A second-half season revival saw Leeds Carnegie cheat their pre-season tag of relegation favourites as captain Marco Wentzel led the Aviva Premiership newboys to a 10th-place finish.

A staggering 17 players have departed the club this summer, with 11 entering the Headingley revolving door but after enticing the likes of World Cup winner Steve Thompson – Back is a confident man.

With an extra 500,000 injected into the playing budget after the club received a full share of funding from Premiership Rugby for the first time – Back now has more financial muscle at his disposal than fellow northern clubs Newcastle and Sale.

And the former England international, who once formed a legendary back-row partnership with Richard Hill and Lawrence Dallaglio, is quick to point out Leeds are a club on the up both on and off the field.

"I stand by my comment from last year that staying up in the Premiership with Leeds was a bigger achievement than winning the World Cup with England," said Back, who has stated this summer that top six is a realistic ambition this season.

"That's because with England, financially, the support we had and the quality of things around us was much better. So what we achieved collectively last year was incredible and it was done through hard work.

"We talked about the end of it and looking back and looking at ourselves in the mirror and thinking there was nothing else we could have done.

"If we had ultimately failed it wouldn't have been through a lack of effort. It showed that with a lot of effort you can't fail.

"I think this year it is about building on last year's success and it will be more difficult because we are trying to establish ourselves as a Premiership club. People won't underestimate Leeds Carnegie this year.

"We have recruited well over the summer and have a reduced squad but one of better quality in terms of leadership and experience and we are looking forward to the challenge."

A lot has been made of Leeds' summer spending spree, having acquired the signatures of Daniel Browne from Bath, Semi Tadulala from Gloucester and Warren Fury from Wasps.

Salaries and transfer fees at Headingley this season have been put under the microscope due to the publication of their Heineken Cup ambitions, but Back defended the club's transfer policy. The likes of big-spending Bath, Leicester, Harlequins and Wasps have once again splashed the cash to recruit the likes of Lewis Moody, George Skivington and Riki Flutey and according to Back, Leeds' transfer policy has been considerably dwarfed by their Aviva Premiership rivals.

"Let's put some facts out there," added Back. "We are actually spending 83,000 more on players than we did last year.

"Seventeen have gone and we have brought in 11, three of which we see as development players and bright stars of the future. What it shows is that better players cost more money.

"I know the million pound figure was branded about but where we are at the minute is we are 75 per cent of the salary cap so we are a long way behind the likes of Leicester, Bath and Wasps. Our objective this year is to consolidate in the Premiership and to secure our status earlier in the year so we can kick-on and recruit early because the best players want to play in the best competitions."

Aviva Premiership Rugby Schools Programme will work with all 12 Aviva Premiership clubs throughout the year, to provide over 36,000 pupils at 600 primary schools in England with a solid understanding of rugby. For more information visit: www.avivapremiershiprugby.com