Chorley's summer signings excite boss Andy Preece for the future
Chorley's manager Andy Preece is thrilled with how his new signings have settled in, bringing positivity to Victory Park despite initial defeats.
The way Chorley’s new boys have quickly settled into their new surroundings leaves boss Andy Preece with feelings of excitement.
The Magpies manager was very active in the transfer market over the summer as he looked to strengthen his squad.
He has brought in a number of new players - this despite the fact that his playing budget has been cut.
It means he has had to be cute in his transfer dealings, looking for bargains and players who have gone slightly under the radar.
Four players - Callum Rowe, Max Hunt, Sam Fielding and Lewis Salmon - arrived at Victory Park relatively early in the summer along with Jack Hazlehurst and Billy Whitehouse who have both re-joined the club.
There were further signings with Steven Bala arriving on a season-long loan from Danish side Akademisk Boldklub, while striker Elliot Taylor signed on a permanent deal from Burscough.
Don’t miss the stories shaping Lancashire. Sign up to our free breaking newsletter
On the cusp of the new National League North season, Preece further enhanced his attacking reserves by enticing Accrington Stanley’s Anjola Popoola for a second loan stint at Victory Park.
That was not the end of the transfer business as PNE youngster Li-Bau Stowell was brought in to fill the huge void left by Matty Urwin, who retired from playing at the end of the season, between the sticks.
Preece admitted it was a testing start for his new-look squad after they fell to 2-1 defeats in their opening games against Chester and South Shields.
However, the fact that the Seals and the Mariners currently occupy first and second in the table respectively does offer some mitigation to those results.
And the Magpies boss revealed that the players drew confidence from their performances in the two games.
And they certainly showed their quality on Tuesday as they brushed aside Marine on their own patch 2-0 to register their first points of the campaign.
It means there is a huge feeling of positivity swirling around Victory Park as they prepare to host Scarborough Athletic this weekend.
“It was important to see the fans’ reaction after the Marine result,” said Preece. “The fans are important to the players because then they feel everybody is behind them.
“I think the fans really like the signings that we have made - I think all the new signings have done really well.
“If things are negative, then you soon hear about it but there’s a lot of positivity.
“There’s a lot of understanding with the situation that we are in.
“I think we have done well; even with having the budget cut, I look at the squad and think we have done really well with our money.
“I think sometimes you have to sit back and look at the bigger picture.
“You can’t get carried away with the two defeats because they were against teams who have, so far, won all their games.
“Points wise I am gutted that we haven’t got the points that maybe the performances deserved from the opening three games but as far as how the lads are playing and how the new boys have settled in, I am excited about the rest of the season.”