Former Harpenden Rugby Club junior Owen Farrell has been named club captain of Saracens on a permanent basis.

The 29-year-old has made 201 appearances for Sarries, who have their training base at Woollams in St Albans, since making his debut in 2008.

And director of rugby Mark McCall believes Farrell, who was also a pupil at Harpenden St George's School, has the drive and ability to inspire and challenge those around him to be an excellent leader.

He said: "In truth, he has been at the heart of the Saracens project from a young age and his leadership has been key to any success the club has had.

“Owen cares deeply about the club and his team-mates. He has a unique ability to inspire those around him, both by what he does and what he says.

“He is thoughtful, insightful and modest but at his core he is a competitor who will never stop trying to improve.

"He pushes everyone here to be better."

Farrell, who is also captain of England, said: "It’s a massive honour. This club’s been a massive part of my life for a long time now and to be asked to be captain is privilege.

“There are a lot of people who are engrained in this place, who know exactly what it’s all about and they’re the ones that drive it every day and the ones that know the standards that we set.

“There’s a lot of care around the place and that is shown in a lot of ways; driving each other, being honest with each other, supporting each other and that’s massive when it comes to working in the same place every day.

“When I think of all the good captains that I’ve been lucky enough to be under is that they’ve been themselves. They’ve learnt a lot but they’ve been themselves throughout and it’s important to be authentic.”