WYNAND Olivier insists most of Worcester Warriors' players "smashed their targets" after returning for pre-season training.

The players had five weeks off at the end of the season before returning for fitness testing.

If they met their goals, they were then given another fortnight off.

And Olivier admitted he had to keep one eye on what he was eating and drinking in order to stay in shape ahead of his return to Sixways.

“I went back to South Africa after the season and it was great to see the family and friends again, just to catch up and be back home," Olivier said. 

"I then had a little break in Hvar, Croatia.

“Gary and the management put a bit of responsibility on the players ahead of pre-season, giving us five weeks off and if we came back in decent shape and passed our fitness tests we were able to get another couple of weeks off.

“I must say the first two weeks in South Africa were quite difficult because all my friends and family wanted to have a beer and lots of food but you have to be a bit mindful.

"I had a couple of early mornings training with my brother and mates so between a couple of beers and catching up there was a fair bit of training to stay in shape.

“I’m obviously not as young as I used to be so it’s a little more difficult to stay in shape these days but it was all good.

"If you just plan in advance to look after yourself the shock when you come back is not as big as the one where you come back from five weeks off without any training at all.

“But the boys were all in good condition and most of them smashed their targets so standards were set and improved and everyone is on the same page now working towards the same goal.”

New signings David Denton, Tom Howe, Simon Kerrod, Pierce Phillips, Sam Olver and Ethan Waller arrived at Sixways this summer and Olivier insists they have fitted in well.

“Worcester is a great place to be," he added. 

"There is a great family atmosphere and they’ve slotted in quickly. Everyone helps everyone with whatever they need.

“There is a great atmosphere at the club. The management have been doing an unbelievable job in pre-season, trying to get everything together for the coming season so a lot of credit needs to go to them as it makes it even easier for the new boys to slot in.”

Warriors have been handed a daunting start to the campaign with home games against Wasps, Exeter Chiefs and Saracens who all finished in the top three last term.

But Olivier is relishing the opportunity to play against the league’s bigger hitters sides especially under the Friday night lights.

“It’s always nice competing against the best of the best and obviously those are three of the best sides," Olivier said.

"We proved we can challenge the top sides towards the end of last season especially after beating Saracens and picking up points against Wasps and Exeter.

“It’s nice to have Friday night home games with a loud crowd behind us. The atmosphere is always buzzing.

“Coming to Sixways is quite tough because it’s not similar to any other place. We will go out there, enjoy it and show what we’ve got.

“Hopefully we can pull in a big crowd and show our supporters we are not doing this just for ourselves but also for them and hopefully they’ll get behind us for the rest of the season.”

Olivier also admitted he hopes good friend and team-mate Francois Hougaard returns for Warriors' duty sooner rather than later after the number nine helped South Africa thrash France 3-0 in their Test series.

He added: “I speak to him every week. He’s a busy man.

"He’s on holiday now and I think he’s off to New York to get a bit of a break after his duties with the Springboks. Hopefully we can have him back sooner rather than later.”