HEDNESFORD Town’s pre-season programme included a trip away that was on a par with some Premier League teams.
The newly-promoted Pitmen begin their Northern Premier League campaign this weekend.
And no-one can accuse them of being under-prepared.
Their pre-season included a training camp in Portugal – which gave the players a very different experience to most non-League teams.
It was backed by Hednesford owners Craig and Amanda Gwilt – and shows the club means business this season.
Manager Gav Hurren told the club’s official YouTube channel: “It was a lot different to what semi professional football clubs are doing.
“It was so professional in what we wanted, this is where we want to be different.
“I just think there were the little fine margins with what we did out there in really getting to know each other.
“If you look over part-time football, you only maybe get an hour and a half, two hours, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturdays with each other, and it’s difficult because you want to try and get that togetherness.
“And we used it more for that. Yes, there was a lot of fitness work, we had a great complex, we were training.
“But it was more that for 24 hours a day, for five days, we were all around each other. We ate together, we had breakfast, we did a quiz out there. And also, we socialised on a couple of evenings, we went down to the harbour, had some food, and it was just really nice to see the other side of the players, the staff, and I know all the boys enjoyed it.
“So a big thank you to obviously Craig and Amanda for putting that on for us.”
Hurren says there is also a new captain at Hednesford this season in Joss Labadie.
The Pitmen boss added: “We kept a big, big percentage of the squad from last year. I signed called people over good players, and then eventually, you go higher.
“There’s good people and good players – and I feel I’ve got that now.
“Everybody in there brings their own little personality, or whatever you want to call it to the dressing room, but they’re all good, good people.
“And with the new recruits coming in, again, a lot of them have played higher and have the standards, which are our values.
“The club’s really fortunate to have a lot of captains in this team.
“But for me, Labs, through all of his career, every football club he’s being at. If you ask what’s Labs’ strength and attributes as a player and as a person, the first thing they’ll say is he’s a leader. So, we saw that very, very quickly.”
