Booth is in his third season as head coach of London Irish

London Irish head coach Toby Booth believes playing tough fixtures in pre-season can help build for success when the Premiership season kicks off.

The Exiles face Newport Gwent Dragons this Saturday after a 21-5 victory against London Welsh in their pre-season opener.

Booth told BBC Berkshire: "Newport will be a step-up, they'll be tough opponents, which is what we want.

"We take a progressive hard approach so match fitness is built up over time."

Booth, who was also the forwards coach for the England Saxons in 2008, admits pre-season is more about the performance rather than the result.

"We'll put a strong competitive side out but the result is actually irrelevant. Pre-season is just pre-season.

"It's about getting the individual form of players to the level needed for the London double header and beyond."

Booth feels the atmosphere around the camp is boding well for the start of the season after their win against London Welsh.

"There is a good morale around the camp with the win and momentum is being built up," he explains.

"Competition for places is strong. The pressure is being kept up by the players which is positive."

Booth does concede the cancellation of Wednesday's friendly against De La Salle Palmerston has hindered pre-season preparations.

"It means some people will miss out on playing a competitive fixture in pre-season which is disappointing," he said.

"But we do have a couple of A League games in the first eight or nine weeks, so there is plenty of rugby coming for players to stake their claim."

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