Craig Bicknell feels his Leighton Town side are well prepared for the start of the new football season, which kicks off this Saturday.
Town’s pre-season campaign comes to an end tonight (Tuesday) against an MK Dons XI, before their first Calor League Division One Central fixture against Northwood on Saturday.
It was a dramatic finale to their game with Tring on Saturday, falling 3-0 down before half time, Phil Draycott continued his good scoring form to pull one back for Town.
Warren Garcia reduced the deficit to a single goal a minute after the restart, before Dan Watson levelled things up in the 63rd minute.
And Draycott found himself in the right place at the right time in stoppage time to snatch a dramatic victory for Leighton.
It sees Bicknell’s Leighton Town record read just one defeat in six matches - his first game against Chesham United Reserves.
And having scored 13 goals in those six matches, Bicknell thinks Leighton can cause more than a few upsets this season.
“No-one is really talking about us at the moment, so I think we could spring a few surprises,” said Bicknell.
“In the lower leagues, myself and my staff and players have been expected to get promotions, which we have done regularly.
“But in this higher division, people are talking about some of the bigger spenders so we’re a but under the radar.
“I think if we can win the games against teams around us in the table, we’ll be in a good position.
“I’ve got a settled squad now, and we can’t wait to get started.”
The pre-season campaign has been a tough one on his players though, with two players already sidelined for six weeks with ankle ligament damage.
Bicknell said: “It’s a manager’s worst nightmare! I lost my keeper, lost my centre back, and then my back-up keeper as well.
“But we’ve got players in place who are more than capable.”
And two months after taking on the job at Bell Close, Bicknell is beginning to feel at home in his new surroundings.
He said: “We’ve had a couple of games at home, both 1-1 draws, so we haven’t lost there, but we haven’t won there yet either!
“I’ve met a few of the fans, and they seem like good people, and the staff at the club can’t do enough for you.
“We really want people to come down and support us.”
Town’s game tonight against MK Dons kicks off at Bell Close at 7.30pm, while Saturday’s league opener against North wood starts at 3pm. Tickets are available on the door.