Romaine Sawyers felt that last week's Training Camp in Germany really helped him get to know his new teammates even if, by his own admission, his singing left a little to be desired. The attacking midfielder joined from Sky Bet League One side Walsall at the start of the month after more than three years with The Saddlers. After being given a few extra days off due to his international commitments with Saint Kitts and Nevis over the summer, Romaine took a full part in the Training Camp in Germany last week which the 24-year-old thought was a great way of getting to know his new teammates.
“I have settled in very well,” said Romaine, speaking to Bees Player. “The boys have been welcoming. The week in Germany and being with them 24/7 helped a lot. I haven’t got to know the players fully yet but I know them enough to say that I am fitting in and settling into the group already. We had a bit of an X-Factor initiation in Germany. In the first round I had to pick from a hat and I got S Club 7’s Reach and in the second round we got to pick our own song and I chose The Script’s The Man who can’t be Moved. It puts you completely out of your comfort zone. I knew every word of it before I started but as soon as I started I didn’t know any of the words. That really settles you down as a person in terms of being able to perform in front of a group and it puts you in there with the group.”
Moving to West London sees Romaine re-united with the man who gave him his chance at Walsall, Dean Smith. Romaine credits Smith with overseeing the best form of his career so far and feels that it made perfect sense to re-join his former boss at an ambitious club like Brentford.
“Dean Smith did a lot for me in the last three years,” said Romaine. “He brought the best form of my life out of me at the start of last season. Momentum wise for my career it was a good step for me to be managed by him again. The club’s ambition matches his and that fitted perfectly for me. I have played some cup games against Championship teams and I am expecting that week in week out. The stadiums are a lot bigger, the pitches are a lot better and the quality of play has improved. I will just see how it goes.”
A run of seven wins in nine games to the end of last season helped The Bees to finish ninth in the Sky Bet Championship but Romaine gets the sense that there is a real desire within the group to go further than that this time round.
“I am not a target person individually but, as a team, we want to do better than the boys did last year,” said Romaine. “We will aim to finish top and if we can’t finish top then second, third or fourth and it fills all the way down. Naturally, you have to aim for the top and then see where you come. The lads who were here last year feel like they are more settled as a group. Coming in as a new boy I am settling with them whereas the core of the group have been settling since last year. The core of the group have that target and the new boys have the filter into it the same way.”