Last Season: 1st
Prediction: 1st
Director of rugby: Dean Richards
Coaches: John Wells and Rod Kafer
Captain: Martin Johnson
Title odds: 4-9 favourites

Last season

Becoming the first side to defend the Heineken Cup, Leicester also wrapped up their fourth consecutive Premiership victory mid-way through the season.

Under the guidance of coach Dean Richards, the Tigers have become the most feared club side in the northerm hemisphere.

Last season they lost just four Premiership games and finished 14 points ahead of nearest rivals, Sale.

After two early defeats to Newcastle and newcomers Leeds, Martin Johnson's men quickly found their form to notch up some notable victories; including a 45-15 win over Wasps, a 48-9 win against Bath and a 37-3 drubbing of Sale.

Ins and Outs

Hull youngster Gareth Raynor will join up with the squad after impressing in this season's Super League. He will join experienced French prop Franck Tournaire, Irish scrum-half Tom Tierney and 22-year-old Welsh hooker Rhys Williams.

Tournaire, who is fourth on France's all-time most capped prop list behind Christian Califano, Robert Paparemborde and Amedee Domenech, will bolster an already experience front-row.

Tierney's eight caps were all won successively at number nine for Ireland between 1999-2000 including the whole of the 1999 Rugby World Cup - until sidelined with a shoulder injury.

Williams, who has represented his country at Under-19 and Student levels, joins from the Kowloon club in Hong Kong following spells at Ebbw Vale and Blackwood, as well as winning a place in the Australian New South Wales development squad.

Rising stars

Harry Ellis
Scorer of the sole try during Leicester's tight Heineken Cup semi-final against Llanelli, Ellis has the pace and vision to make the number nine jersey his own this season.

Should Dean Richards opt to play Austin Healey at fly-half, the Tigers' Players Young Player of the Year 2001/2 could extend his already impressive record of two tries in just 12 full appearances.

And with Clive Woodward short of quality replacements for Kyran Bracken and Matt Dawson, Ellis will have international honours on his mind in the run-up to the 2003 World Cup.

Ollie Smith
The 2001/02 Members' Young Player of the Season, the 20-year-old centre has already cemented his place in the Tigers' backline.

With 12 tries in 35 full appearances for the club, Smith certainly has a bright future ahead of him, and England coach Clive Woodward will surely be keeping a close eye on a player who has already won the confidence of coach Dean Richards.

Prediction

There is little reason to doubt that Leicester will again be pushing for domestic and European honours this season.

With the arrival of Frank Tournaire, Dean Richards has an enviable squad from which to choose - a fact made evident when he chose to keep All Black supremo Josh Kronfeld on the bench for the entire Heineken Cup final.

They will certainly face a stern challenge from last year's runners up Sale as well as Gloucester and a revitalised Northampton.