Neilston boss Andy Whiteford admits his team's promising pre-season campaign is already giving him a selection headache.
The Farmer’s Boys were 2-0 winners against Haddington Athletic on July 6 before drawing 3-3 with Arthurlie in the Kenny Hay Memorial Trophy match last Thursday and going down 2-0 against Premier Division side Hurlford United on Saturday.
Whiteford is preparing for life in the Second Division after Neilston's relegation last season and has been impressed with his players in recent weeks.
He told Barrhead Sport: “It’s all about getting the legs moving in time for the league season starting, so the performances are almost secondary but they have been brilliant.
“I couldn’t ask for much more. I thought we deserved to win the Arthurlie game and we were up against a really strong Hurlford side on Saturday and a draw probably would have been a fair result, so in terms of performance, I’m really pleased.
“There’s no-one in the squad who hasn’t performed and it makes my job much harder when it comes to trimming the squad down for the start of the season but it’s a good problem to have.
“Most of the guys have come through injury-free. You can pick up wee knocks after being off, so it’s pleasing to have a clean bill of health as well.”
Neilston and Arthurlie players after local derby (Image: Supplied)
The fixture list for the 2024/25 season has now been released by the West of Scotland Football League, with Neilston kicking off their campaign with a trip to Larkhall Thistle on Saturday, July 27, before hosting Bellshill Athletic in their first home fixture on Wednesday, July 31.
After that, they will head to Lanark United on Saturday, August 3.
Whiteford believes his team have been handed a tricky start to the season but hopes his troops will be ready for battle.
He added: “We’ve got a really difficult start against three teams who I think will all be in the top half of the league and challenging.
“The teams coming up from the Third Division will be really strong and they might be looking at us coming down and thinking it’s a difficult game for them as well.
“We’ll be looking to hit the ground running with a fully-fit squad and the guys are fighting for places for that first league game.”
Neilston will continue their pre-season schedule by hosting Benburb this Saturday, with kick-off at 2pm, before facing their development team at the Brig O'Lea at 7pm on Monday.
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