League 2 season preview - part four

I thought I’d do something a little different and after completing the Twitter92 a month or so ago, I thought it’d be apt to see what my fellow League 2 supporters thought about their aspirations and expectations for their teams in the coming season. Here is part four (of four):

Port Vale       

Josh Green – Twitter

“I can see another bumpy season ahead at Vale Park! With all the off the pitch aggro we will be lucky to stay in the top half as everyone need to pull together for a promotion push and I can't see that happening any time soon. With attendances dropping (www.starve-em-out.co.uk) and increased pressure on the board all of this will overshadow anything that happens on the pitch!

Look out for John McCombe! Took pretty much every club award last season and I have every faith that he will do it again. With us not having much fire power our defence will have to be on top form once again.

I would say Crawley first game as this should give a glimpse of what we can expect this season not only with new players but with attendances/protests. Other than that Crewe and Shrewsbury are always tasty games as for some reason they seem to hate us.

With Micky back who knows what could happen over the next 46 games but it won’t be short of ups and downs. Enjoy the new season of Emmervale! V2001 OUT”.    
      
Rotherham United     

Gareth Simmons – Twitter – Blog

 “In all honesty, I really don’t know. It’s going to go one of two ways. We’re either going to be really good and be challenging for promotion, or, it’s not going to work and we’ll end up in the bottom third. This is due to the complete overhaul we’ve had this summer both with the backroom staff and playing staff. Also, we’re still two signing away from challenging for promotion.

From the games I’ve seen so far it has to be Lewis Grabban. He’s got a touch of pace, a trick or two and seems to have an eye for goal. He’ll certainly trouble opposition defenders and with the right partner, we could have a good strike force on our hands.

Not really got any games to look forward to, sadly. After Chesterfield went up our closest game is Bradford. Burton away is always a good day out, and obviously, I look forward to the game that will hopefully send us up, if we’re going to be challenging.

If Andy Scott can get two more signings, especially a big target man, then it could end up being a good season. Looking at our squad now, we just seem to lack a physical presence and some height. Another centre back wouldn’t go a miss as well as a left back. Then we could possibly be talking about promotion”.

Shrewsbury Town    

 Steve Bradford – Twitter

“I think this season will produce a similar finishing position to the last (4th), however I feel this will be our year to succeed in the play offs and gain promotion to League 1. The last few years we have suffered some bad lack with the Gillingham play off final winner in 2009 coming from a corner that never was in the 90th minute and last season’s phantom goal by Wycombe which went on to cost us an automatic spot. I feel lady luck may just be on our side this season and all will end on a high.

We have the ever reliable centre backs of Ian Sharps and Shane Cansdell-Sherriff, but new signing Reuben Hazel won’t have dropped a league to sit on the bench so competition for places is high. I think this year in midfield Sean McAllister and Lionel Ainsworth will offer us more than they did last season, they both will have had a full pre season behind them and providing they keep fit I feel they will create a lot of chances. These chances will hopefully be converted by new signing Marvin Morgan who in my opinion is an improvement on Matt Harrold who we have sold to Bristol Rovers. James Collins, another new signing Terry Gornell from Accrington and promising youngster Tom Bradshaw will be fighting for a the remaining place alongside Marvin Morgan.

One game I was looking forward to before the fixtures were announced was AFC Wimbledon away as I have great respect for what they have achieved in such a short space of time. Hereford away is always one I look forward to as it’s an easy 3 points for us. Weekenders are possibly Southend in September and Plymouth in March next year. As well as grounds I have not yet visited which I want to knock off this year: Derby County (League Cup), Gillingham, Bristol Rovers, Southend, Crawley Town, Swindon Town and Plymouth.

Southend United    

Tom Ross – Twitter

“Anything less than promotion in my (and the rest of the Southend fans) eyes would be a failure we have a good squad which have jelled well during the last 12 months after everything that happened last season.

Ryan Hall and Jemal Johnson on the wings and Barry Corr and Neil Harris upfront banging in the goals are players to look out for. Alassane N'Diaye looks a beast with no-one getting past him. Kane Ferdinand cousin of Rio came in from the youth teams at the beginning of 2011 and has made the defensive-mid position his. And cannot forget about the defensive tank that is Bilel Mohsni, a bit of a loose cannon but when on form he is unstoppable! And can do a decent job upfront.

Looking forward to all of our games, most notably our local-ish games as once again not playing Colchester: Orient in the cup, Crawley, Wimbledon, Barnet and Gillingham”.

Swindon Town  

James Spencer – Twitter

“A few weeks ago when we hardly had a team I would have said we’d finish mid table at best but now we have signed a few quality players and done well in a few pre-season games I think we will certainly be challenging in the top 3.

I think Matt Richie, Paul Caddis, Jonathan Smith and also Alan Connell will be key for us this season.

It’s been a long while since we played Oxford so that comes about quite soon in late August – definitely one to look forward to; as well as the League cup game against Bristol City, which should be good”.

Torquay United  

Andy Charles – Twitter

“If you had asked a couple of weeks or a month ago I'd have struggled to find much positive to say. The appointment of Martin Ling was met with derision and we lost the heart of our team from last year (Bevan, Branston, Stanley, Zebroski) but pre-season and Ling's signings have changed all of that. Suddenly from being told we were looking a value price to be relegated we have pundits claiming we could repeat last year's play-off run. I'm looking forward to it now but we have a really tough start to the season so that will probably tell us everything we need to know.

Eunan O'Kane, now seemingly established in a central midfield role, has the ability to play much higher than League Two. He's been linked with a few Championship sides already and our worry is that we don't get to see much of him this season. Hopefully long enough to make an impact at least. The rest are all new boys, ones we are looking forward to see build a heart to the team. Keeper Bobby Olejnik is an Austria U21 international, Brian Saah has it to prove in the league all over again and striker Rene Howe can hopefully build a career now he is with a team that actually wants him unlike Peterborough. Most exciting signing is probably Ian Morris - a proper left-winger with a left-foot, something we haven't had in a decade. Look out for youngster Saul Halpin as well - real prospect who went for a trial with Derby last year and scored a hat-trick in his only game for their reserves.

Bristol Rovers home and away will be interesting to say the least after former manager Paul Buckle's questionable departure this summer - fair to say the fans do not like him a lot these days. Crawley because we just don't like them or their managerial staff and Plymouth because of the local factor. Hard to say we are actually rivals because we've played each other so infrequently - I just hope they don't go out of business before then which would be a tragedy for their fans. And personally, Barnet because it's nice and local for me and a lovely club to visit.

I'm just hoping the 'dark siders' we have among our support give Martin Ling and the new players a chance to build into a team. It's tough having so many new faces around at the same time after four seasons of almost complete stability and some of the signings (Chris McPhee, Martin Rice) returning to the club have been met with a mixture of laughter and disgust. And anyone hoping to come to Torquay as an away fan and sit down will be unlucky - our creaking main stand is being demolished and replaced with something bright and shiny - won't be ready until February at the earliest, meaning it's standing room only for visitors”.

And I would like to take this opportunity to thank all 24 fans for their input – it is much appreciated. Hopefully I’ll get to meet a couple of them (as well seeing a few familiar faces again) this season.

Read their blogs, follow them etc.

League 2 season preview - part three

I thought I’d do something a little different and after completing the Twitter92 a month or so ago, I thought it’d be apt to see what my fellow League 2 supporters thought about their aspirations and expectations for their teams in the coming season. Here is part three (of four):

Hereford United

Matt Rowe – Twitter

“I think we will be closer to mid table than last term, we have cleared out the deadwood and replaced them with players with a better pedigree such as Harry Pell. I would be happy with a stable mid table finish and our chairman has already echoed this.

2 players to look out for are Stuart Fleetwood and Harry Pell. Stuart Fleetwood thrived last season next to big targetman Manset and since we have sold him to Reading we have brought in a similar player in Delroy Facey who i believe will help Fleetwood score more than his 20 overall goals last season. We had Harry Pell on loan from Bristol rovers last season for a couple of months and he changed our midfield. He adds physical presence with his height in the middle of the park (6ft 2) and also has the ability to pick out a decent pass or take on the odd player. He was Bristol Rovers young player of the season but chose to join us last month on a 2 year contract.

Games to look forward are the following away trips: Shrewsbury, Cheltenham, Plymouth and also Southend as it's the first game of the season!

I am quietly confident about our chances of having a decent season. Since we sacked Simon Davey last season, who left us bottom with 5pts from 10 games, we had a change of fortune and if the season had restarted under Jamie Pitman we would've finished 12th (from the 36 remaining games). Hopefully we will see progress on the Blackfriars End where the temporary seating currently is and start to see signs of construction of the new stand”.

Macclesfield Town

Ian Stewart – Twitter

“Every season since the great escape under Paul Ince, various bookies and media outlets have had Macclesfield as the prime candidates for relegation. Every season we've proven this prediction wrong, it's not been easy particularly with our resources and certain circumstances. The best we can hope for is a mid-table finish, although with the right team attitude and good run of form, there's no reason to rule out a push for the playoffs.

The loss of two key players, Tyrone Barnett and Hamza Bencherif has not helped our prospects, but I feel there's great pace and potential in the players bought in the close season by Simmo. Like his predecessor, the late Keith Alexander. Simmo [Gary Simpson] has a knack for plucking talent from the non-league,Tyrone Barnett joined us from Hednesford Town last season. We hope that Ben Tomlinson, signed from Worksop Town, can follow on from where Tyrone left off. Arnaud Mendy is an interesting purchase as well, a big strong midfielder released by Derby County. He had a loan spell at Tranmere Rovers last season, and I've heard positive accounts from Tranmere supporters regarding his performances in midfield.

The one game that stands out is Swindon Town, it'll be a Friday night spectacle, and with the appointment of Paolo di Canio there has to be fireworks. Also looking forward to Bristol Rovers, Northampton Town and Southend United; as well as the newly promoted sides which are two juicy prospects.

We have a positive young squad that Simmo has built up, and some firm experienced league players like Nat Brown and Matt Hamshaw in our ranks. Though the only real concern is the lack of an experienced striker”.

Morecambe

Jack Steer – Twitter

“I am confident that we will do much better this season than last, which is necessary to avoid the drop! There is a much more positive attitude around the club this season under Jim Bentley, and it wouldn’t surprise me if we sneak a play-off place. Conservatively expecting mid-table, but confident that we can do much better.

New signings Izak Reid, Lewi Alessandra and Gary McDonald are all contributing to the renewed optimism around the club and will hopefully do very well. Add to those our consistent good performers Barry Roche and Andy Parrish. I think Andy Fleming will have a great season too.

Optimistically looking forward to the Accrington derby games in hope that we break the football league curse of being unable to beat them – they won’t have the benefit of Jimmy Ryan’s bi-annual deflected goal this year! Also looking forward to seeing Tony Roberts of the Daggers again.

Everything is looking very positive at the moment, the changes that Jim Bentley is making are all positive and are very much fan-focused. Everyone connected with the football club is right behind him and the players would run through brick walls for him”.

Northampton Town

Kris Holland – Twitter

“The chairman wants us to finish in the top 3, Northampton fans generally anticipate the play-offs...and me? Well i reckon we'll wind up around 9th or 10th. Reaching the top 7 is not necessarily beyond the realm of possibility but after coming within a whisker of relegation last time out, expectations have got to be reined in.

19 year-old Michael Jacobs is one to watch. The kid is absolute dynamite and was essentially the kingpin of our attacking chances last season, scoring 8 goals in league and cup; some of which were absolute corkers, while setting up more than double that. He was also voted player of the season for 2010/11. Not bad for your first season as a pro! He's destined for greater things than a drawn out career at Northampton Town so my advice is to enjoy his rare talent at your local ground while you still can.

I’m looking forward to AFC Wimbledon away. I'm one of those who is totally caught up in the romance of their rise up the leagues and I wouldn't begrudge a loss against them, so that should make for a special evening at Kingsmeadow. Also looking forward to taking on Crawley Town. It's not unfair to say they've bought their favourites tag, so it'll interesting to see what they're really made of.

For as long as I can remember Northampton's summer transfer dealings have always been built from the bottom up. By which I mean, bringing in defenders over strikers. But for this pre-season, the opposite is true The chairman has dug very deep into his pockets to bring success and League One football back to the town, with additions such as Jake Robinson, Arron Davies and returning favourite Ade Akinfenwa. With this in mind, and so very few defenders on the books, I can't wait to see what sort of formation Gary Johnson has in mind for August 6^th”.

Oxford United

Joe O’Callaghan – Twitter – Blog

“I can really see us challenging this season. Play offs definitely but hopefully higher.

Players to look out for would be Peter Leven a new signing who everyone is raving about; as well as Tom Craddock up front and Jake Wright in defence.

Looking forward to the 21^st August, where we have the scum (Swindon Town) 3rd or 4th game in”.

Plymouth Argyle

Dave Weeks – Twitter

“I think we’ll do quite well – we look like we are signing quite a few good players and with Reid as our manager we should get a few premiership loans in. As an Argyle fan anywhere above the drop zone will do us fine after two relegations in a row. I feel we can push for play-offs and reckon we will finish between 6-10th.

Players to look out for would be Luke Daley - I watched him pre-season and he was energetic and loved to take players on. If teams want to stop him running down the wing and putting crosses in they will have to put two players on him. Also Stephane Zubar, Quality defender whom strikers will find it hard getting passed. Surprised he re-signed when he could've joined PNE, proves that there is still a bit of loyalty out there.

Looking forward to quite a few games: Swindon and Bristol rovers – those two because they produce goals. Torquay’s a nice close game; AFC Wimbledon, I chose this one because after everything that has happened to them I'm happy they are back in the football league and looking forward to playing them”.

League 2 season preview - part two

I thought I’d do something a little different and after completing the Twitter92 a month or so ago, I thought it’d be apt to see what my fellow League 2 supporters thought about their aspirations and expectations for their teams in the coming season. Here is part two (of four):

Burton Albion

Rob Dunn – Twitter

“I think we will be around the top half perhaps pushing towards the play off positions if we get a decent striker in. Many of our fans are not as optimistic but I feel we vastly underachieved last season and there's plenty of room for improvement.

Jacques Maghoma is the biggest player to look out for – a talented midfielder with skill in abundance. On his day he is unplayable and can produce great things. Jimmy Phillips is also one to watch, young, tricky winger with lots of promise, expecting a big season from him.

I'm looking forward to all our games, but especially places I haven't been before: Swindon, Plymouth and AFC Wimbledon. I've always enjoyed going to Oxford too.

As long as we don't have a huge backlog of fixtures again and a long list of crippling injuries, I'm fairly optimistic that this season will be a good one, with better quality football and without the worries of being embroiled in another relegation battle”.

Cheltenham Town

James Lewis – Twitter – Blog

“Personally, I’d be happy with a solid mid table finish, somewhere between 12th and 14th. We have a good enough squad, but don’t currently have the budget to really challenge the likes of Shrewsbury, Swindon, Bristol Rovers etc in terms of buying players. What’s making me feel positive though is that last year Accrington managed to get into the play offs despite small gates, a tiny budget, and no real star players. We were crying out of a striker, and have been spoiled with two. I think what we need now is a loan goalkeeper to really battle with Scott Brown for the number 1 spot, and a winger.

 Marlon Pack will be our key next season; signed after he impressed on loan from Portsmouth, I could see us getting a large fee for him later down the line. We have Russ Penn partnering him in midfield and they complement each other well. Then there’s Danny Andrew. Opinion has been slightly divided on him as he’s a little naive defensively, but he’s an excellent attacking left back. Josh Low is also a very important player for us, though most of you will already know about him! There’s also Darryl Duffy who will likely be our main outlet for goals. 

I’m looking forward to the games I can go to really! I don’t live in Cheltenham now so I can only go to a handful. Swindon at home is one – great local derby and Northampton away for the same selfish reason. In terms of games in general, Hereford at home – we need revenge for them giving us a hiding at our place in February, and of course there’s Crewe, who beat us by a humiliating and downright degrading 8-1 scoreline back in April.

Aspirations – in terms of positives, we’ve largely retained the core from last season. The year before we built pretty much an entirely new squad, but this time the players won’t need as much time to gel.  Spirit in the camp appears great and the players seem confident of the season ahead. Listening to some of the fans however you’d think there was no hope”.

Crawley Town

Louie Elmer – Twitter – Blog

“I genuinely think we can achieve promotion this season, and I think the key to that will be the tremendous fitness levels the players possess and the strength in depth as well.

Matt Tubbs is seemingly the obvious stand-out player to watch, with 40 goals last season. But Scott Neilson is particularly dangerous and the two central defenders, McFadzean and Mills were arguably one of the best pairings outside the Championship last season. Young Charlie Wassmer has a lot of potential as well.

I'd say games to look forward to are: Port Vale away (first game of the season), Wimbledon (home and away) and probably Swindon at home, as well as Barnet away (nice bank holiday away day). They're the ones that jump out at me.

To be honest I'm really glad practically all of our transfers are already done and dusted, giving the players time to blend in before the season kicks off- I think it goes to show, whilst he's not everyone's favourite, Evans really knows what he's doing”.

Crewe Alexandra

David Gallagher – Twitter

“I think we may have missed our chance last season by conceding too many goals. We've lost the league's top goal scorer and not signed anyone yet, so I think we'll finish in the top half, but that's about it. I think it'll take at least one more season before we're good enough to go up though.

New players coming through will definitely be ones to look out for; especially Nick Powell and Max Clayton, with Arsenal and Liverpool rumoured to be after both already. I think Shaun Miller will build on last season too.

Looking forward to Port Vale home and away, as always. The league has traditionally had quite a large number of northern teams, so I'll think we'll struggle away from home, even more than we did last year.

I'm looking forward to seeing how these young players turn out. The team is basically full of kids right through, with only a few experienced players. That said you'd expect us to struggle to improve on last season, but you never know”.

Dagenham + Redbridge

Matt Lees – Twitter

“Realistically, I think we have a good chance of promotion via the play-offs. With the departures of Danny Green and Romain Vincelot, next season will be quite difficult. Danny Green in particular was a huge part of everything good while he was at Dagenham. That said, we still have a good squad of players and John Still always manages to pull something out the bag.

D J Green. Another Danny Green, who at the end of last season showed he has quite some talent and may be well be the stand out player for 2011/12.

Three stand-out games for me: Barnet, Oxford and Southend away! Barnet because it's always a feisty game. Southend will be a fun game that's not too far away and Oxford because they were kind enough to let us secure promotion at their ground a few seasons back!

With Dagenham's limited budget I'd say everyone who runs the club has done a fantastic job in bringing in such talent and keeping positivity at the club despite relegation. Still being a league club for players and fans alike is amazing considering where we've come from in such a short amount of time, so I can only praise the fact the club are aiming to bounce straight back up into League One”.

Gillingham

Andy Manion – Twitter – Blog

Gillingham is one of the bigger clubs in League 2. At the start of last season the manager, Andy Hessenthaler, stated that if we weren't promoted last season would be seen as a failure - the target is the same this season. Anything less than promotion will again be seen as failure. Most fans expect promotion and with the new summer acquisitions this should be possible. Realistically promotion should be attainable, but whether it will actually happen is contentious. It will depend largely on managing to keep the squad fit. There isn’t a great deal of depth there and last season was largely injury plagued. However there is still optimism there and amongst the club there is still the belief that Gillingham is still too big a League 2 club. The optimists predict promotion – personally I reckon without further depth the club will once again fall short of expectations.

The biggest signing this summer was undoubtedly Adam Birchall. The former Dover Athletic player was prolific in the lower leagues. Not being blessed with any particular physical presence or speed he has good control, an eye for a goal and good vision. He has already impressed pre- season. The other players to look out for are Chris Whelpdale who impressed last season and possesses both skill and pace. He was a regular starter for Peterborough last season. The other Peterborough signing is also set to impress – Charlie Lee was notable last season in his Loan spell at Gillingham.

There aren't many big games in League 2 for Gillingham as there are no local rivals to speak of. Playing Swindon will be interesting given the controversy over the signing of Adam Birchall. (Swindon agreed a fee with Dover Athletic for him before Gillingham came in last minute and snapped him up, despite being bitter rivals with Dover). The other game to look forward to will be playing Southend United, both teams have a good following for League 2 teams and are fairly close to each other.

The season could go either way, whatever happens we should get off to a better start than last season but whether we can keep it up having lost our two main goal scorers from last season is hard to say. Overall there’s plenty to be optimistic about at Gillingham”.

League 2 season preview - part one

I thought I’d do something a little different and after completing the Twitter92 a month or so ago, I thought it’d be apt to see what my fellow League 2 supporters thought about their aspirations and expectations for their teams in the coming season. Here is part one (of four):

Accrington Stanley

Mel – Twitter

“I think we will finish mid table at least. Although I still think we could do another push but will play safe.

Key players: Winnard, Coid and Barnett.

Looking forward to the local derbies, although not many this season. Games to look forward to: Morecambe & Macclesfield; as well as AFC Wimbledon, Port Vale, Torquay & Bradford. Not looking forward to playing Crawley.

We've started from scratch, but as always Coleman can turn nobodies into football players; no ownership battles this season is a plus. Hoping for decent referees this season, ones who keep the flow, keep on pitch & have decent eyesight - yes it may appear a bias whinge but this has been a big blight on our promotion pushes”.

AFC Wimbledon

Matt Griffin – Twitter

“Our manager seems to have made it clear that getting the 50 points to ensure survival is the priority. Anything else would be a bonus for us in our first season back in the football league, although I don’t think a mid-table finish would disappoint or surprise many fans.

Again we’re strong at the back, with Dons fan and playoff final hero Seb Brown between the sticks. New captain Jamie Stuart is enjoyable to watch and alongside him in defence is steady defender Brett Johnson who’s also likely to get a few goals. There are also a couple of youngsters worth keeping an eye on in Reece Jones and Brendan Kiernan.

Looking forward to a couple of decent London derbies again – the long trips across town to Dagenham and Barnet. Also personally wouldn’t mind stuffing Creepy Crawley.

Can’t wait for the new season to start. Just 9 years ago we were in the Combined Counties League so looking forward to some more great memories and fun away days out for this strange little SW London club”.

Aldershot Town

Laura Chiverton – Twitter

“Realistically I think this league will be fairly tough. I would like to think we will make the playoffs. The team has looked incredibly strong during pre season & are looking as strong as the end of last season.

Adam Mekki & Alex Rodman are the players to look out for and are both great players from Conference roots. Bradley Bubbs scored 40 goals last season & has set a target for this season’s campaign.

I’m looking forward to playing AFC Wimbledon. Terry Brown, our former manager was a true legend & gent. He left the club to care for his terminally ill wife before Waddock led us to promotion as champions.

I’m hoping that all clubs this season will spend & budget more wisely to ensure their football league status”.

Barnet

Ben Kentish – Twitter

“Who knows how we’ll fare this season! We've got what is on paper the best manager and backroom team we've had in quite a while, and we've kept most of the squad that played so well at the end of last season, but as ever with Barnet it's impossible to predict. I'd say lower mid-table has to be the minimum aim, and with a few more good signings and a bit of luck with injuries etc, a play-off push is a definite possibility.

Mark Marshall is probably the biggest threat to defenders, but new signings Mark Byrne and Sam Deering are both pretty skillful and will set up a fair few goals, plus score a few themselves I would imagine. McLeod and Kabba (when fit) up front must on their day be one of the best strike partnerships in the league, and in defence we've got a couple of good, solid centre-backs. We've actually got the backings of a pretty good side. 

For some reason I'm quite looking forward to playing AFC Wimbledon. It's a shame we've lost the Stevenage derby for this season, although I'm sure we'll be playing them against next year! But Pompey away in the Carling Cup should be a good one”.

Bradford City

Tim Roche – Twitter

“After the debacle of last season, when the hapless Peter Taylor very nearly led City into non-league, a mid-table finish would represent an improvement. New boss Peter Jackson has brought in a varied selection of youngsters and a couple of more experienced heads, so while the play-offs may just be beyond us in what is likely to be a transitional season, a finish of 9th place would be acceptable. This being our 4th season in League 2, our fans are now more accustomed to the reality that promotion might not always be a realistic target.

 Ross Hannah banged in a staggering 52 goals for Matlock Town last season, so it will be interesting to see how he fares in the step up to League 2 football. Mark Stewart, a striker from Falkirk, has also looked impressive in pre-season so City will be very hopeful of improving on last term’s dismal goals scored tally. Of the youngsters we have signed, the 16 year old Scott Brown from Clyde looks to be the most exciting prospect. Although he was brought in with the newly formed Development Squad in mind initially, there is every chance we will see him in the first team sooner rather than later as Jackson rates him as the ‘one of the best 16 years olds (he has) seen in a long time’. No pressure then!

 With the majority of League 2 teams being southern-based there will be some lengthy away trips for the City faithful. AFC Wimbledon should be a particular highlight, as away days in the capital are always fun and it’s a new ground to visit. There’s also the Carling Cup tie away to our dear friends Leeds United to look forward to in the first week of the season – it would be nice to get one over on them, especially as the game will be live on Sky”.

Bristol Rovers

Richard Crew – Twitter

“As it’s Bristol Rovers first Season back in League Two it’s hard to tell, but pre-season has gone well and I've got a lot of confidence in Mr Buckles ability. The signings we've made appear to be sound and the vibes coming out are positive so I have a sneaky suspicion we'll make the play-offs or better if everything gels quickly.

Gill, Zebroski, Virgo, Carayol and McGleish will be the key figures to look out for. I believe we'll be a team that entertains; Mr Buckle has an eye for attacking football judging by the signings and tactics he's employed so far.

AFC Wimbledon stands out for me as the big one, not because of any rivalry but simply because of Wimbledon’s history. I feel it’s an honour to be the club they play first on their League return. I hope it’s a classic for the present Sky Cameras. Of course the Derby games against Swindon, Hereford, Cheltenham and Torquay will hold some added spice as well”.