Jim Pleased with Friendly Exercises
Jim Chapman spoke to the official website to give supporters a general update, at the end of a week that saw The Bully Wee take part in two public friendly matches against League 1 sides Albion Rovers and Airdrie.
The Clyde manager revealed that he was happy with how both matches went:-
“They served their purpose and that was the important thing. I know that the flow of the games was distrupted by all of the subs and trialists but it’s important to see people in a game situation.
“At Albion, after the first 10 minutes I thought we settled down and we dominated the rest of the half. There was a lot of good stuff. We lost our way a bit in the second half with all of the changes but overall I got out of it what I was looking for.
“On Tuesday against Airdrie we tried some different things. It took as a while to grow into the game but we got there and that was very pleasing; the players were prepared to work at something to make it happen. We didn’t have a lot of the ball, but we didn’t look in any danger and that was the idea, a more defensive approach to see if we could keep the door shut. For the majority of the game we managed it.
“We’ve got another game against good opposition tomorrow and we’re looking to build on what we’ve done so far. The training will also step up now in terms of the tactical development.”
Kyle Bradley was also added to the squad earlier in the week, on loan from Rangers, and Jim continued with an update on further player recruitment:-
“We’re still looking to bring in another four – maybe five or six – players, but I think it’s important with the resources we have that we make sure what we do spend is on the right type of person. The dynamic in the changing room is excellent and we want people that can add to that, as well as improving us on the pitch. We want to create a good environment and off the park is every bit as important as on it.
“Also, we want to be able to look at the bench and think that the strength of our strategy can remain after making changes. We are challenging ourselves to make expectations high and any player that we bring in will know exactly what is expected of them.”
The squad’s first competitive action is now just over a week away, with Annan Athletic due to visit Broadwood on the 15th July in the opening match of the Betfred Cup group stage.
“I’m very supportive of the new format,” Jim said. “To me, it’s four very challenging pre-season matches. Realistically, it’s a challenging format for teams from the lower leagues to progress through, but we will aim to win every match, that’s going to be the mentality. I want to see the club changing that way, in everything we do, not just on a matchday.
“The competition is a fantastic opportunity to take part in four solid games against good opposition. We will learn a lot from it and that will help us to develop our programme ahead of the league campaign.”