The national leagues finally wind into action this Saturday
which means we have virtually a full card and lots of exciting fixtures being
played.
Top of the bill are our Men’s 1s who face a tough start to
their campaign away to Clydesdale (1600). Western have been working very hard
over the summer with the focus firmly on fitness and structure and they look to
have a very handy pre-season under their belts with four friendly wins from
four games against both domestic and English opposition.
Vishal is certainly pleased with how pre-season has gone
saying, “We’ve improved every week of the summer so that’s been encouraging and
I’m delighted with how the boys have responded, especially the youngsters who
have really stepped up.”
“The friendlies have been good and the trip to Leeds and
Wakefield was great both from a technical point of view and as a bonding
exercise. The boys have played some good stuff with Rob Harwood and Andrew
McConnell linking especially well.”
“The only fly in the ointment is Hamish Galt’s injury: he broke
his wrist in training and will be out for a few weeks. We have plenty of
options in midfield, though, so we should be able to cope with his absence.”
“Everyone is excited about Saturday. After all the hard work
we just want to get started and get playing. Everyone is in good form so we’ll
train tomorrow [Thursday] night with a view to final preparations for Titwood
on Saturday. Obviously we want to start the season with a win.”
Clydesdale have improved steadily over the past few years
and are likely contenders for a top-four spot. Games between the two sides
often come down to a single goal or are drawn so this could go right to the
wire and it should be a cracker: get along to Titwood to support the boys if
you can.
The Women’s 1s are away to Gordonians (1330) and travel to
Countesswells in good spirits after a strong pre-season. Their final friendly
is tomorrow night (2000 at Titwood against Clydesdale) and they should have too
much for a Gordonians side whose main aim will be survival in Division 1.
Kaz was certainly in good form and extolling the strength in
depth of her side. “We have outstanding competition for places, so much so that
picking a final squad is becoming more and more difficult! It shows the
strength in our club, though, and is a great headache to have.
She went on, “Gordonians will make life difficult for us by
putting everyone behind the ball and trying to stop us playing. It’s up to us
to break them down and score goals.”
The Women’s 2s make their bow in the Women’s Championship
with an away game at Ayr. After years in West District it’s good to see them
make the jump and the fresh challenge will do them good. Our table-topping
Women’s 3s have the weekend off, returning next week presumably to smash some
other dismal unfortunates who have foolishly got in their way.
The Men’s 2s have strengthened over the summer, accruing
some much needed experience to supplement a cohort of youngsters who appear to
have kicked on in the past few months. They face a very stern opening test,
away to Watsonians 2s, in what will be an excellent metric for what they might
achieve this season.
Down the club, the 3s have got off to a very handy start
with two wins from two. They will aim to make it three on the spin against
Kelburne in a high noon showdown at Glasgow Green. The 4s, another team off to
a perfect start, host Helensburgh 2s in the only home game of the day at 1500.
The 5s are at Hillhead 6s, also at 1500.