Leighton Town got their new Calor League campaign off to a decent start with a hard-fought 0-0 draw away at Marlow on Saturday.
After the turmoil and disappointment of last season, the all-new Town put their hard pre-season preparation to good use as they slammed the door on Marlow.
Their stubborn defensive performance denied the much-fancied Marlow from taking all three points on opening day.
Speaking afterwards, manager Craig Wells said he was pleased to get things off to a good start with a point.
He said: “It was a great hard earned point away on day one of the new season.
“Against a physical and committed Marlow side eager on their return to the Southern League to get a win on home turf the lads showed real grit, determination and stubborn attitude to get something from the game.
“Real positives from the match included a depth of squad to make three effective substitutions, a superb clean sheet and an attitude change to recent times where they refused to cave in under some significant pressure in the second half.
“A couple of call outs in particular include a superb man of the match performance from Sam Chapman, with significant contribution from his partner at the back and skipper Charlie Cunningham.
“It was a real grafters performance from Sean Bishop and an excellent clean sheet for Haydn Dodge.”
Tonight (Tuesday), Leighton host their first match back at Bell Close as they take on St Ives Town.
They got off to a winning start to the league season on Saturday, beating Chertsey Town 2-1.
But Wells is keen to get a few more things sorted before the first home match.
“I’ve still got a couple of things to look at for Tuesday’s game at home,” he said. “But when looking at the progress from an entirely new squad from last year then on the whole a very positive days work from all concerned.”
Once the football season returns, it sometimes feels like teams are bombarded with fixtures as Town found out their opponents in three more cup competitions.
Leighton’s road to Wembley begins on August 31 as they take on Biggleswade United in the FA Cup Preliminary Round.
They also take on North Greenford Unitedin the Preliminary Round of the FA Trophy on Saturday October 5.
They then face a huge tie against St Albans City on Tuesday October 15 in the Red Insure Cup first round.