STIRLING talked about a three year plan when he took over the post as the club's new high performance manager.

And having already agreed a new contract which will see him stay at the club until the summer of 2012, he said: "It (winning the cup) was a fantastic way to finish, but if we weren't so honest with each other, that would have glossed over the areas which need working on.

He explained: "Inconsistency was the thing which disappointed us last season as coaches. We put in some really good performances but we put in a couple of average ones as well. Consistency will be a big focus for us this season."

Despite winning the British & Irish Cup against Munster in May, the Pirates suffered a 60-15 mauling at Camborne against Bristol only two weeks beforehand, and Stirling admitted that was his biggest disappointment during the season.

He said: "It was something I pondered over long and hard and was disappointed in the application of a few of the players on that day. They had their opportunity to put their hands up and a couple of them didn't, so they are not with us anymore. But in suffering that 60-pointer, the players didn't enjoy it, the coaches didn't enjoy it and I'm damn sure the supporters didn't enjoy it. To avoid situations like that again is paramount."

Hurt

He continued: "I have learnt that it is a long season and we got our timing right in the cup, but we let ourselves down in the play-offs a bit. Not getting bonus points at home to Bedford and Plymouth hurt us because we then slipped up away at Bedford. If we had got ten points instead of eight before losing at Goldington Road we could have still qualified."

Looking at the positives from the campaign, he added: "The semi-final of the British & Irish Cup against Doncaster was one of the most comprehensive performances we put in all season, and in the final itself with a couple of right decisions at the right time, we could have easily scored 40 points."

With a new Championship season looming large on the horizon he remains upbeat, despite the shock announcement that the club would be returning to play at the Mennaye Field this season.

Stirling explained: "I think we have got the right people in place, with Ian (Davies) and Harvey (Biljon) who have done a fantastic job. Also we have got a good strong squad and I'm sure we can build on the foundations laid last year. The club spoke to me about a new contract and I was very interested because I believe we've really started something here."

In terms of the futures of his two right-hand men, Stirling added: "I think the conversations regarding Ian and Harvey will be coming up soon and continuity will be crucial to carrying on the work here. They are as crucial as myself and Simon (Raynes) and everyone else involved in the club, so that will happen shortly."

Shopping

The Pirates released 11 players at the end of last season and summer recruiting has brought in Ian Nimmo (Nottingham), Matt Hooper, Kyle Marriott (both Plymouth Albion), Phil Burgess (Loughborough Students), James Currie (Dings Crusaders), Grant Pointer (Northampton), while Tom Cowan-Dickie and Drew Locke have signed on dual registration deals from Exeter.

Stirling is pleased with his summer shopping. "The new squad members are good people which is important, but every one of the people we signed wanted to come down and meet us. It was not done through an agent or word of mouth which shows the players were interested in coming.

Every single player we spoke to signed for us, so they were obviously impressed with what we are trying to do here and where we are going, but more importantly, how we could help them become better players."

Having described his new-look squad as 'versatile', Stirling explained how that would work. He said: "It is not solely budget driven, but a few clubs got themselves in (financial) situations last season and we are not going to go down that track. We have to work within our means, but we have got huge value for money and we have got a very strong squad.

The Pirates suffered a prolonged injury crisis last autumn, and Stirling was forced to juggle his team selection on an almost weekly basis. Pre-season has, however, been a little different this time around.

He said: "Last year the focus in training was on shocking the players into some forward momentum. We had to break some pretty bad habits and to do that we had to strip them back, break them and then build them up again.

Seamless

"We broke a lot of players because they weren't used to training that hard and committing themselves that much. This year it has been a different approach because the core of the squad are still here and the new guys have mixed in straight away. It has been seamless, which is amazing."

Worcester Warriors may be the hot favourites to win promotion back to the Premiership at the first attempt, but Bedford Blues boss Mike Rayer has tipped the Pirates as a team to watch closely.

Stirling commented: "Worcester will bring a lot of experience and quality, as well as a number of international players, which is fantastic for us to play against. But they will have to be on their mettle every week, as Bristol found out. That said, Bristol will be very strong; they may have lost some players, but they have a real tradition and will be there or thereabouts.

"Bedford will move forward from where they were last year and they were pretty good then, but we will be up there too. Rotherham are a new team with a new coach and new approach so I reckon they will come out of the blocks pretty fast and so will Esher, who will hit the ground running. Then there's London Welsh who have made no bones about the fact that they think they are a Premiership team in waiting, so good luck to them. We will certainly be a better team this season, but then again so will everybody else."

The RFU have responded to criticism from some quarters and have adjusted the points-scoring format of the Championship to take greater account of where teams finish at the end of the regular season.

Changes

Stirling said that he was happy with the changes. "I hope we won't be involved in the bottom four, of course, but taking a point for every win you have got down there will be good. Last year it was obvious one team got away with it."

The draw for the pool stages of the cup has left Stirling describing the Pirates' opponents as 'the pool of death'. He added: "I wouldn't have it any other way, because to be the best you have to beat the best and we seem to have all the best in ours. We have got a tougher draw, with only two games at home this season, so our objective will be to make the top two qualifying places and see where things go from there."

So what has Chris Stirling the coach learned during his first year in English rugby? He replied: "In New Zealand you don't get the contrasting styles in the way that teams play. There are subtle differences back home between forwards-orientated and free ranging, but here the differences can be vast, which is really interesting and challenging as well. I now have a much greater respect for the set-piece.

And in a message to the Pirates' supporters ahead of the new season Stirling said: "I hope that they can put everything into it again this year and all I can do is promise that the squad and the coaching staff will give it everything they have got, and work really hard to ensure that the fans get their money's worth and enjoy themselves.

"I feel that we are good enough to be right up there at the end. Whether we are or not depends on a lot of things and some of them will be out of our control."