5:50pm Monday 6th July 2009
By Simon Parker
Stuart McCall cajoled his toiling players with the occasional wisecrack and the odd word of wisdom.
As the groups of four plodded round the cricket pitch, completing lap after lap in the searing heat, McCall looked on eagerly.
Back in pre-season; back in his element again with the bitter disappointment of a few months ago pushed firmly to the back of his mind.
Not that the coming season promises to be any easier for the City boss.
With a much-reduced budget to juggle around this summer, McCall has had to make sure that every penny in the club coffers stretches that bit further.
There is still work to be done. City are currently short of a senior goalkeeper, at least one more central midfielder and possibly a back-up for centre half.
Similarly, a year ago McCall was still in the hunt for a keeper. Rhys Evans only appeared on the scene ahead of the tour to Scotland.
And the never-ending waiting game for Michael Boulding’s signature was in full swing.
But McCall had pretty much nailed down all his top targets. Players identified months before had, in the main, been captured.
“It’s been more difficult this time,” he admitted. “I came back last season knowing that we’d got the players that I had wanted.
“We were still chasing Boulders and sorting out a goalie but McLaren, Lee and Brandon were all players that I’d aimed for and we’d signed.
“Having said that, it didn’t work out in the end. The first three-quarters of the season went great and we met our targets but then it all fell away.
“So there are no guarantees even with a decent budget. Look at what happened to us, and it was the same with Shrewsbury.
“This time we’ll be looking at the likes of Notts County, Rotherham, Bury and Shrewsbury again to be formidable but we’ve seen in the two years I’ve been here what can happen.
“There are still situations to be resolved here, though I’m looking to bring in one or two more players if possible.”
With Graeme Lee gone, the focus falls on the future of Paul McLaren and Chris Brandon. Boulding has already nailed his colours to the mast by declaring his willingness to take a pay cut, an offer the club will certainly be pursuing.
Meanwhile, preparations step up a gear with the first of the pre-season friendlies on Saturday.
Burnley’s visit to Valley Parade as a newly-annointed Premier League side adds a bit of spice. Though as the opening outing for both clubs to dust off the cobwebs, it will not be as competitive an affair as the previous two pre-season encounters.
McCall said: “It’s a bit early but it was a game we couldn’t knock back. We were hoping to get Burnley again but obviously they had already planned to go to America and Scotland.
“But Owen (Coyle) gave me a ring after the play-offs when I was on holiday saying they would be available and it was too good an offer to turn down.
“Burnley only came back (to training) on the fourth so it will be very early for them as well. They’ve only had five weeks off because of the play-offs compared with our eight.”
McCall will certainly hope that some of Burnley’s luck with injuries can rub off on his own squad.
The Clarets’ promotion success was built on stability. with Coyle needing to call on only 23 players throughout their entire 63-game marathon.
Compare that with City, who used ten more from 13 fewer matches.
It’s a fact that has not been lost on McCall, who saw the massive disruption caused by Omar Daley’s costly injury to follow the long-term absences of Brandon and Paul Heckingbottom.
With more streamlined numbers to work with in the future, he cannot afford a repeat.
He said: “The aim for next season is to have a competitive enough squad but we’ve also got to be a bit luckier with long-term injuries.
“Anyone would find it tough when you are losing the likes of Brando for six or seven months, Hecky for six months and Omar, of course, from February. We also had Joe (Colbeck) missing for three months and Lee Bullock out for a long while as well.
“That’s why we had to bring people in on loan but obviously from the club’s point of view, you are still paying the players, like we are with Omar now, so it’s not ideal.”
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