JONNY MAY claims he is the undisputed sprint king at Gloucester Rugby but the flying wing is aiming to topple the rest of the Aviva Premiership with the help of Olympic gold medallist Marlon Devonish, writes Jamie Holt.

May clocked in at 10.71 seconds over 100 metres in the pre-season tests last term, leaving closest rival Charlie Sharples almost sat in the blocks.

It’s a rivalry that May says gets quite serious at times, and now Devonish has joined the Kingsholm outfit as a sprint coach it’s about to be taken to another level.

May has only been working with the 37-year-old, who helped Great Britain claim gold in the 4x100m relay at the Athens Olympics in 2004, for two weeks but has already seen a marked improvement.

And with speed his greatest asset, May admits the rest of the Aviva Premiership had better watch out when the season gets up and running again.

“I’ve done a lot of speed work in the past, and I’m always looking to get faster,” said May. “I’ve done a bit of work with Marlon already, that’s what I enjoy about pre-season, it’s not all about rugby, you can build all aspects of your game; speed, strength, agility.

“Speed is my most important asset, and we’re doing some really useful drills in order to improve that.

“Marlon is getting me really fired up, I’m working a lot on my acceleration but he’s also teaching me to relax my upper body which should hopefully make me a lot faster.

“It’s early days yet, but I’m already feeling an improvement which is great. Me and Charlie normally have a showdown, sometimes it’s not even a friendly showdown! I’m looking forward to the next one.”

May has only recently returned to training after a hectic 2012/13 season. It all started with the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Premiership Rugby 7s Series and it ended with an England debut against Argentina last month.

The 23-year-old, who captained the 7s side 12 months ago, actually missed the thrilling 31-28 final defeat against London Irish through injury but he insists he’s desperate to make amends this season, if selected.

“I really want to play, I think all those that took part last season want to go again,” he added.

“Those that didn’t play felt they missed out, and I was gutted to miss out in the final at The Rec with a dead leg.

“But it was a perfect night in the group stages at Kingsholm. We won three from three and a bit of revenge would be nice this time around if we get to another final.”

The J.P Morgan Premiership Rugby 7s kicks off on August 1 at Kingsholm with rounds at Franklin’s Gardens and Allianz Park and the final at The Recreation Ground. For tickets and more information visit: www.jpmorgan7s.com or follow @jpmorganrugby7s.