Last Season: 3rd
Prediction: 3rd
Director of rugby: Nigel Melville
Assistant coach: Dean Ryan
Captain: Phil Vickery
Title odds: 11-2

Last Season:

Gloucester enjoyed one of their most successful seasons to date last year - despite a number of off-field troubles that might have derailed a lesser club.

Phillipe Saint-Andre's efforts to add a touch of panache to the cherry and white's play were rewarded - but the Frenchman had left for home before he could see his team blossom.

The pack was as strong as ever, but it was the backs who surprised the Premiership this season, filled with the likes of James Simpson-Daniel, Andy Gormasall and Ludovic Mercier - whose kicking was generally sound.

Gloucester's win over Bristol in the Zurich Championship final at Twickenham - their first trophy since the 1970s - will have given the club confidence to move forward, but for most fans another result sticks in the mind.

On Saturday 4 May, in front of a full-house at Kingsholm, Gloucester annihilated Bath by a record 68 points to 12. Life doesn't really get much better for the Shed.

Ins and Outs

Nigel Melville arrived at the club in March, but this pre-season will have been the first chance for him to impose his style on the club.

His first recruit was Dean Ryan, the former Bristol coach who left the Memorial Ground in the summer.

Ryan led Bristol to the Zurich Championship final, and should prove a useful ally for Melville as he attempts to topple Leicester.

Full-back Thinus Delport moves from the Natal Sharks. The 12-capped Springbok's arrival suggests that Henry Paul will be playing at fly-half or in the centres this year.

The two other arrivals are England 7's star Simon Amor and England A flanker Peter Buxton, who moves from Newport.

Rising stars

James Forrester

Gloucester's young flanker rose to international prominence on his England debut, running 65 yards to score a try leaving the likes of Jonah Lomu in his wake.

The openside added a touch of dynamism to Gloucester's rampaging pack, and with long-range tries to his credit, must surely be on Clive Woodward's mind as a back-up to Neil Back and Lewis Moody.

21-year-old Forrester graduated from the club's academy, and will look to this season to cement his place in the Gloucester side alongside the likes of Junior Paramore and Ed Pearce.

James Simpson-Daniel

Like his team-mate Forrester, James Simpson-Daniel, or 'Sinbad" excelled on his England debut, fooling Percy Montgomery with an outrageous dummy, before accelerating past Jonah Lomu to score.

If the try was impressive, the manner in which Sinbad dummied a Springbok international and embarrassed an All Black was supreme.

The 22-year-old started most of his games for Gloucester last season at wing, but enjoys playing at centre and fly-half.

A player who possesses all the cheek, talent and pace of Austin Healey, he could go all the way, perhaps even to Australia in 2003.

Prediction

This is where it starts getting difficult for Gloucester.

The club has a major trophy in the cabinet, a place in the Heineken Cup, and a team that has a potent mix of experienced internationals and youthful zest.

But now the cherry and whites are sailing in unchartered waters, at least since the 1970s.

Not only is Gloucester unquestionably the premier club in the west-country, they are also one of five clubs who could consistently challenge Leicester - how will the club cope with this level of expectation?

The difference could be Nigel Melville and Dean Ryan, two men who know all about winning league titles.