Premiership's winds of change are clearing out cobwebs for England

The first month of the Aviva Premiership has been enough to take the breath away – certainly that of the players. A year ago it was the referees who were blowing, their whistles playing a shrill tune as they penalised attackers at the breakdown. It is now the turn of those with numbers on their backs to blow. The first three rounds of the Premiership last season yielded 50 tries: the total this season is up by 56% to 78 with only two clubs, London Irish and Wasps, who were the leading two try scorers 12 months ago, recording fewer than at this stage last year. Leicester's first three matches last season produced no tries. It was a case of kick, kick and kick again. But the Tigers are now the prime entertainers, their opening three matches generating 20 tries and witnessing three comebacks, two successful. "The game is being played at break-neck speed all the time," said the Leicester director of rugby, Richard Cockerill. "It is faster this season and physically more demanding than ever with large passages of open play and the need to support your team-mates in attack and defence more important than ever. Everyone's conceding more tries than they were last year." Not quite, but before yesterday no one had gone through a game without conceding a try, compared to eight sides a year ago, when matches tended to be condensed into the final 10 minutes as the team that was behind started taking risks. There was no one better then than Northampton at scoring winning tries in the dying minutes. The Saints have made a strong start to this season, as the only unbeaten team in the Premiership after three rounds and the one which started the fourth round with the best difference between tries scored and conceded, 9-5. Northampton were singled out last week by the England team manager, Martin Johnson, as a club able to play with pace and intensity but, crucially, possessing variety. The Saints are at Saracens this afternoon, the side that defeated them at Franklin's Gardens in last season's play-off semi-final. Johnson may well point to Northampton as a model, given the frequency with which he has raided their cupboard in the last year. Ben Foden, Chris Ashton and Courtney Lawes have enhanced England's mobility, dynamism and ambition. Yet it was not that long ago that Twickenham regarded Northampton with disdain. The Saints were stuffed with foreign pensioners and took the attitude that there was little point in developing England players because they ended up missing half the club season. The deal with the Rugby Football Union over the management of elite players changed that. Even Saracens, or "London South Africa", as they have been dubbed, can no longer been seen as a colony of expats. Emerging players such as Alex Goode, Noah Cato, Brad Barritt and Andy Saull supplement more experienced hands such as Steve Borthwick and Richard Wigglesworth. England are being well served by their clubs, both in terms of the number of eligible players appearing in the Premiership and the quality of rugby that is being played. Foreign players are no longer an issue, which cannot be said in Wales, and even the New Zealand Rugby Union has admitted that there is something to be said for cross-pollination. It is allowing its Super 15 sides to each sign up to two foreign players next season, a category that does not include Pacific islanders. As with the refereeing of the breakdown, it is a question of balance. English rugby has too often in the recent past struggled to find an equilibrium, fighting itself at least as heartily as it took on opponents. Saracens and Northampton should confirm today that the winds of change are blowing gustily.