Pre Season Training has started!

AN Other | 05/07/2017

Bridgwater and Albion reported back for their first pre-season training session on Tuesday evening and in addition to the majority of those who were part of the team last year there were some new faces.

Simon Morrell the BARFC head coach said: “It has been a busy off-season, with a few of boys moving on and a handful of new recruits coming in.

“We have added three or four lads and there may well be more to follow and what I will say is they are all really good people who will add value as players and more importantly they are really good blokes who will buy into the culture we have been building at College Way.

“We have absolutely no intentions of buying success, as we know this is not sustainable. We want to invest our time in the local boys we have, as they can all make significant strides in the coming seasons, as and when an obvious gap in playing resources appear, we will then look to bring people in.

Morrell went on: “The boys reported back for pre-season last night and the above message, or a somewhat simplified version, set the tone for this pre- season. Put simply, last year guys like Shaun Mahoney, Ethan Trebble-Westlake and George Sluman really shone through; the key is that another three or four ‘bolters’ emerge from this current group.

“We know that in Olly Dunn, we have the perfect role model for these younger players, epitomising everything we are trying to instill in the group.

“If last night is anything to go by I would expect Kyran Devitt, Jordan Buller and Jay Owens to really kick on this year.”

Regarding recruiting Morrell said: “On the recruitment front, we were keen to avoid any ‘knee jerk’ reactions to the loss of Dan Kemmish, Micky Norman, Brad Field, James Collins, Rob Allen and Scott Franklin; we have instead erred on the side of caution, ensuring any additions ‘fit the bill’.

Regarding his coaching line up Morrell said: “On the coaching front we were disappointed to see Rob Allen go, as he really started to impress at the end of last year, however, we are thrilled with the appointment of Luke Plummer and Stuart Heal, who will be taking on some responsibilities between them.

The head coach added: “We also welcome back Lindsay Carver, who will head up the second XV this season, supported by James Parker and Joe Bussell.”

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