Northampton Saints’ Blakiston Challenge is not your standard pre-season fitness test. While most professional rugby players brace themselves for the Bronco or the dreaded yo-yo, Saints begin their campaign with something far more punishing — and far more meaningful.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Rugby, Saints and England lock Alex Coles offered a vivid insight into the challenge — prompting former England flanker James Haskell to recall the heavy cost such sessions exacted during his own Premiership career.
Honouring History: The Story Behind the Blakiston Challenge
Unlike most modern fitness tests, the Blakiston Challenge is not driven purely by data or GPS metrics. Instead, it is rooted in the history of Northampton Saints.
The challenge honours Freddie Blakiston, a former Saints player and First World War hero awarded the Victoria Cross for repeatedly rescuing wounded soldiers under heavy fire.
“Basically, they wanted to create some challenge based on the history of Northampton,” Coles explained.
“He carried all these bodies off the road that were getting heavily shelled. The challenge is supposed to mimic that.”
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What the Blakiston Challenge Involves
The structure of the test is deliberately uncompromising:
- A 2.5km cross-country run
- A series of 100-metre shuttles carrying sandbags
- Four at 30kg
- One at 50kg
- A final 2.5km run to finish
“It’s minging,” Coles admitted.
“Because it’s on concrete, you run the risk of road-running issues. Big men aren’t designed to run on the road like that.”
Early iterations of the challenge brought their own complications.
“The first year, the sandbags weren’t particularly solid. You pick them up, they break, you’re trying to grip them,” he added.
James Haskell’s ‘Hot Tub’ Aftermath
The brutality of carrying heavy loads on hard surfaces struck a chord with James Haskell, who spent time at Northampton towards the end of his career.
“I remember getting back from that day, crawling into my garden, getting into the inflatable hot tub thing I had,” Haskell said.
“I was unable to get out of it for six hours.”
It was a stark reminder of the physical toll Premiership rugby places on back-row forwards and tight-five carriers alike.
When Pre-Season Goes Wrong
Coles also shared a cautionary tale of a teammate who attempted to outsmart the test by shedding weight before the session.
“There was one lad who was on the bigger side,” Coles recalled.
“He thought his game plan was to not eat the night before or the morning of, to be as light as possible.”
The result was predictable — and dangerous.
“He ran out of sugars and was screaming. They were trying to give him gas and oxygen, just piling liquid into him.”
Steve Borthwick’s Demand: The Fittest in the World
The conditioning required to survive the Blakiston Challenge is now translating directly to the international stage. Under Steve Borthwick, England’s physical standards are uncompromising.
“Steve’s made it real clear that he wants us to be one of the fittest teams in the world,” Coles said.
While the atmosphere in England camp has evolved into a more welcoming environment, the work rate remains relentless. For forwards, the infamous Tuesday session is designed to replicate the deepest fatigue of Test rugby.
“You’re doing long scrums, mauling, all the physical stuff — and then you’re expected to run fast and hit high metres,” Coles explained.
“You’re pretty cooked after that.”
The methodology is clear: fatigue the pack through static exertion before demanding speed and accuracy, ensuring England can perform under pressure late in Six Nations Tests.
Alex Coles A Test of Engine, Not Ego
Whether it’s hauling sandbags across Franklin’s Gardens or surviving Borthwick’s punishing training blocks, the message remains the same for Coles and his fellow forwards.
Fitness is not about looking good in pre-season — it is about having the engine to keep going when the legs want to stop.
