Director of Rugby John Barnes insists Hartpury College will be sticking to the methods that gave them so much success last year as they prepare for the Greene King IPA Championship.

Barnes’ side recorded an incredible 30 wins from 30 in National League One last season, including 28 try bonus points, as they earned promotion at a canter.

It’s set to be a much trickier campaign for them this time in the second tier of English rugby but Barnes will be trusting his young players to continue where they left off.

“There’s no point in moving up a league and trying to change the way you play to fit that league or the opposition. You’ve got to trust the way you play and believe in the players,” he said.

“I’m sure sometimes this season that won’t come off but we’ll certainly stick to it and it certainly helps develop young players which is what we’re all about.

“The physicality week-in, week-out against some full-time clubs and some very experienced players and some very good young players is going to be a challenge.

“There was a handful of really tough games last year so we could rest players when needed but this year week-in, week-out is going to be the big challenge.”

Hartpury could not have been dealt a more difficult opening day fixture as they start their Greene King IPA Championship campaign away at promotion favourites Bristol Rugby.

The game at Ashton Gate will be live on Sky Sports and it’s a club Barnes knows well having been a Bristol season ticket holder last year.

“Being a Bristolian myself and a season-ticket holder down there last year it’s great, and I worked there for ten years,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to going down to Ashton Gate and challenging Bristol.

“At the end of the day they’re clearly a very good squad, very well coached and looking to go up straight away which you can understand.

“The guys are so looking forward to it – being live on Sky is something the guys really want to play in and it’s given them some motivation to get into the first-team this season.”

Hartpury College restarted pre-season earlier than usual as they prepare for their biggest ever season with Barnes bringing in a few extra players during the off-season.

They have already had friendlies against Worcester Warriors and Rosslyn Park and take on Gloucester on Friday night before meeting Bristol on September 3.

“We came in a little bit earlier as we know we’ve got to prepare a little bit more,” added Barnes.

“We have brought in a few more newer players than we usually do, so we got them up to speed with the way we play which is vastly different to where they’ve come from, so they’ve got up to speed on that.

“We’ve just got to be competitive, we’ve got to step up, we know that, and we want to be competitive week-in, week-out and come the end of the season we’ll see where we are.”

The Greene King IPA Championship is the second tier of professional rugby in England. To keep up to date with the latest news and features follow @ChampRugby on Twitter