Poppies boss Cox hopes his timing is right for pre-season

Paul Cox is hoping his timing will be spot on as he plots Kettering Town’s pre-season schedule.

Last weekend it was confirmed the new National League North season would be starting no earlier than September 5.

That has led people to believe the new campaign could be set to begin on either Saturday, September 12 or the following weekend on September 19.

It’s that latter date that the Poppies boss has had in his mind since attention started to turn towards next season following the early finish to the previous campaign due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Cox had his players in for fitness testing last weekend and they will be working in an open training session again on Saturday before their pre-season programme really clicks into gear on August 1.

And the Poppies manager hopes his players will be at their peak whenever the big kick-off arrives.

“We have always had September 19 in our minds when it comes to the start date,” Cox said.

“There are some teams who have started back early and there are some who haven’t come back yet.

“We had September 19 planned in but sometimes you can start pre-season too early and by the time you get to the real thing, players can be mentally or physically tired believe it or not.

“I think we are starting back in a timeframe where we feel the players will be peaking for those first league games, that’s always the aim.

“Fitness levels should be good and we will make sure they get the right amount of game time during the pre-season friendlies.

“Hopefully we will hit it at the right time.”

The Poppies, meanwhile, have confirmed four pre-season friendlies, which at the present time, will be played behind closed doors.

All four are away from home at Eastwood CFC on Saturday, August 15, at Stamford on Tuesday, August 25, at St Ives Town on Saturday, August 29 and at Coalville Town on Saturday, September 5.