Ben Youngs is the first to admit this season has not been one of his best but the British and Irish Lions scrum-half insists he has emerged a wiser player for the his experiences.
Youngs appeared in two of the three Tests during last summer’s victorious tour down under, including starting the second game against the Quantas Wallabies in Melbourne.
But suffering from a bad shoulder post-tour, he took his time to regain his stride back at Leicester Tigers, missing out on selection for England in November.
While yet to fully force his way back into the international set up with the Red Rose, Youngs is back playing regularly with his club and helped the Tigers' to victory over Newcastle Falcons on Sunday.
And more relaxed on the pitch, the 24-year-old hopes his dip in form has been consigned to the past.
"It has definitely been a challenging season but it is probably a season when I am going to learn more than any other,” Youngs told The Telegraph.
"I started to notice it early on. Things that were always happening for you, suddenly weren't.
"I was trying things and I was thinking 'but that has always worked'. Now it wasn't.
"I was a bit inaccurate in what I was doing and after a couple of games, it became a matter of trying too hard. It was frustrating because I just need to relax and let it happen.
"I have definitely come through it. Now it is just a matter of trying to perform, week-in, week-out for Leicester and just get a rhythm and consistency in performance back.”
