SO here we are again with a new season kicking off on Saturday away to Mansfield Town.

We have certainly experienced the downs and ups of football during the last few months and are now looking forward to another year in the Blue Square Bet Premier League.

Pre-season has been the usual roller-coaster ride with lots of games and players to look at. We started away to Frome Town and each player selected played 45 minutes in a comfortable victory and no injuries. The second match saw us travel to Harborough Town where we were looked after like royalty. A dominant first half should have seen more than just the one goal and a very young team succumbed to a second goal at the very end of the second period (45 minutes each again).

The next encounter was a really tough one away to Didcot Town where the senior players were given approximately 60 minutes each in a 1-0 victory.

We then travelled the vast distance to Shortwood with a similar format and edged a 2-1 win. I felt a great bonding that night not only with the team but with the whole community on a great family evening. We rediscovered our friendship with our brothers across the valley who made us feel so welcome and that match is now a guaranteed fixture every pre-season.

Our first home game was against Bristol Rovers who brought a youthful Reserve team to the New Lawn and this was the first occasion where players were asked to perform for the full 90 minutes. In a very exciting encounter we came away with a convincing 3-0 victory. My younger squad members then played at home to Laverstock and Ford and had a comfortable 4-0 win.

The pre-season tour then rolled on to Chippenham Town who gave us a stern physical test which we stood up to well. James Bittner conceded his first goal in the dying minutes in a 1-1 draw. Exeter City were the next visitors to the New Lawn and gave us our best tactical game where we re-shuffled our own shape to share the spoils in another 1-1 draw.

Last Friday saw us then entertain Cirencester Town who gave us our toughest game of all. They came fired up and tore into us with total commitment and passion and deservedly went in at half time 1-0 up. For the first time I had to tear into my players as the opposition were showing more hunger than us... That cannot be. Before they went out I wrote the word "COMPETE" on the whiteboard for my players to study. We certainly did that in the second period and in a very entertaining game we came out 3-2 victors. My hat goes off to Brian Hughes and his team for giving us such a great game.

Mike Fowler made his comeback in the final 20 minutes against Cirencester and I was able to fit in a match behind closed doors against Frome Town at home to give him and Jared Hodgkiss both 90 minutes in a well earned 1-0 win.

There, that is all of the pre-season detail. What really matters is that the players build up their match fitness ready for the opening game against Mansfield Town and that we keep injuries down to a minimum with such a small squad. It is a brand new bunch of players who are bonding tighter all the time and the vibe in the dressing room is a very positive one.

This is my first season starting as a manager and I and my team are really looking forward to putting down a marker to the rest of the league. We may have one of the smallest budgets and squads but I can guarantee that we will not lack in effort and commitment. Our aim is to make our fans proud of their club and to improve on last year`s showing. 50 points is the first target, starting with a good performance on Saturday.

Then its home to Wrexham next Tuesday evening The New Board have reduced the entry price for under 16s to £2 for all league games this season, and I hope this encourages you to bring along your kids, their friends and the family. I look forward to seeing you all at The New Lawn.

Bring it on!