JOE Riley was happy to be one of the early pace-setters in the summer influx at Valley Parade.

The former Manchester United under-23s skipper beat the rush when he put pen to paper in May.

It was just over a fortnight since Simon Grayson had left the club and not far off a month before Michael Collins would get the nod as head coach.

But Riley backed his leap in faith at the time – and now insists he has made the correct call.

The full back said: “It was good. I was happy to get into the club early and now we’re making the signings to make the squad and the team as strong as possible.

“My ambitions are the same as the club’s, that’s the reason I signed.

“All the signings have fitted in and you can see we all agree on the same thing. We have the same drive and passion.

“We’re looking for promotion by playing the best football we can. The new signings and myself are hopefully going to help to do that.”

Riley believes a switch to Valley Parade will give him the first-team football he craves. The frustration of a loan spell at Sheffield United two seasons ago cut short by a freak training accident was followed by another year of knocking on the door at Old Trafford.

It is a new chapter for City under the unproven stewardship of head coach Michael Collins and the 21-year-old is determined to be at the forefront of his thinking.

“Nobody’s place in the team is secured yet,” added Riley. “That’s what pre-season is about.

“It’s the time to showcase yourself to the fans and the coach and prove you are ready come the season.

“Places are up for grabs. It’s what you do at the weekend that’s going to keep you in the team.

“Pre-season is where it begins. You can work hard at training but it’s the games that matter and show whether you’re ready and prepared to play.

“We’ve been working hard in training. Everyone’s excited for the season to start but it’s all about preparing correctly for that.

“We know how important the league will be and we’re trying to push for promotion.

“There’s new players and new coaching staff and so far it’s working really well. The lads are enjoying the training, it’s been top notch, we’re working on things that are relevant to the game.

“We’ve put into play a lot of things we’ve been working on at the training ground. It’s all positive stuff.”

For Riley, it’s the prospect of making that next step and establishing himself in the senior game that means today’s opener at Shrewsbury could not come quick enough.

“That’s what you want. The games are why I’ve come to this club and they are why everyone wants to be playing football.

“We’ve enjoyed ourselves while building our fitness and taking things from training into the games. Now we’re all looking to take that into the season.”