Chris Willcock believes his newly assembled Glossop North End squad is well prepared for an assault on the North West Counties Premier Division this coming season. The Hillmen manager said: “Although all the recent signings have not been formally announced, Glossop supporters can be assured that the squad that we have put together has all the elements that we are looking for. After three weeks of hard work on the training ground we now begin our pre-season matches and we can utilise the effort shown so far and start to gel the squad into a winning team”.
The latest player to sign for Willcock will be no stranger to the Glossop faithful. 22-year-old Tom Bailey has returned to the club that he left just under four years ago. Tom was an integral part of the squad that reached the FA Vase final in 2009 but after losing his place in the side he will feel he has unfinished business at Surrey Street. The 6′ 1″ striker is one of five forwards that Willcock has brought in and the manager is excited at his capture. “It was important with Mark Battersby moving on that we secured a proven goalscorer and with his impressive tally of 28 goals for Maine Road last season, Tom is under no illusion that we expect a similar return this time around. Along with the other strikers we have brought in we are confident he will provide us with the firepower we are looking for. ”
Glossop supporters have plenty of opportunity to catch sight of the team that Willcock has built before the season begins at home to Ashton Athletic on 3rd August, starting this coming Saturday afternoon when the Hillmen have a home game against an Oldham Athletic XI. The full pre-season fixtures are as follows:
Saturday 13th July – 2pm – OLDHAM ATHLETIC XI (H)
Monday 15th July – 7.30pm – Rochdale Town (A)
Wednesday 17th July – 7.45pm – Mossley (A)
Saturday 20th July – 3pm – HYDE FC (H)
Tuesday 23rd July – 7.45pm – New Mills (A)
Saturday 27th July – 3pm – Cefn Druids (A)