Howard recognises the potential benefits of the additional rest afforded to those players who were given time off by their national coaches, but insists that those lads returning from international duty will not be rushed back unnecessarily.
"I think you'll see the likes of Harry Ellis and Martin Corry who've missed the tours be a lot better for that extra break," says Howard. "It's obviously a little more difficult for the guys who've been away with Ireland and England, the A teams and the U-21s, but we're determined to ensure that they get a sufficient amount of recovery time."
Some of the younger tourists have already begun training, although no-one will be rushed back unduly.
"They'll get a good degree of rest first, so they'll have gone away and had their four weeks off, and after that we'll try and bring them back into rugby slowly. If that means them not starting at the beginning of the season, then that's how we'll approach it just to ensure they have a proper chance to get their minds and bodies right. We've got a long season ahead of us, so it's obviously in the best interests of the club to be patient with our players."
Tigers returning internationals:
England:
Scott Bemand
Andy Goode
Tom Varndell
Lewis Moody
Lois Deacon
Ben Kay
Julian White
Graham Rowntree
George Chuter
Ireland:
Leo Cullen
Geordan Murphy
England Saxons:
James Buckland
Sam Vesty
Ireland A:
Shane Jennings
England U-21:
Tom Croft
Matt Cornwell
Jordan Crane
Scotland U-21:
Ian Nimmo
David Young
