For the St. Thomas University Tommies men's rugby team this season is all about defense and decision making.

With a good mix of veterans and rookies in this year's lineup, Tommies head coach Curtis Lauzon believes focusing on the right skills will bring the team success.

"Our focus as a team is decision making. The coaching staff will give the players the tools to make decisions on the field and ultimately prepare them to make good situational decisions," he said.

"Our sessions will also have a high focus on defense, which will give us an opportunity to do well on that side of the ball."

The Tommies, who fell short in the New Brunswick final the past two years, brought in five high-level recruits this season— Nicholas Vail, Deryk Hill, and D'Artagnan Mallet of Oromocto, NB, Justyn Roberts of Fredericton, NB, and Cameron Pollard of Murray Harbour, PEI.

"The rookies we brought in are work horses," Lauzon said. "They will make an immediate and direct impact on our team and have already pushed veteran players on the team to perform."

The core of the squad's leadership will come from returning players Nick Foote, Mike Thurber, Cameron Gillis, and Zachary Lakes, who bring the right attitude, positional knowledge, and tactical skill.

Lauzon said the biggest potential obstacle for the Tommies will be staying committed to their goals and the sacrifices they have to make to achieve them.

"Being a student athlete isn't easy, and what the coaching staff is asking of the athletes isn't minor," he said. "If our players commit themselves to meet team goals on and off the field we will be very successful."

While there's varying goals for individuals and the team, the ultimate goal continues to be winning a Maritime Championship.

That journey will begin with the regular season, which kicks off September 10 in Charlottetown against the University of Prince Edward Island Panthers.