Stockport County boss Jim Gannon says his players are in great shape for the new campaign – but he’s still looking to add more depth to the squad.
The Hatters open the National League North season with a trip to newly-promoted Spennymoor Town, who have won every game of their pre-season schedule.
Gannon said: “I’ve watched videos of Spennymoor, and they’ve played a lot of teams below them in the pyramid so they’ve had some very big wins, and obviously got goals and confidence from those results so it’ll be interesting to see if that’s prepared them for the rigours of the National League North.
“They’re a very good footballing side, very fluid, and they’ve added really well over the summer, bringing in Ryan Hall and they’ve still got big Glen Taylor up front.
“They’ve got goals from all different departments of the team, so they’ll be hard to contain, plus it’s their first game at this level and they’re at home so they’re going to be fully charged.
“We’ve got to be really up for this game because there’ll be a tremendous atmosphere about the place.”
County concluded their pre-season schedule on Saturday with a narrow 1-0 defeat against National League side Barrow AFC.
New signing Ben McKenna made his County debut having been drafted in following an injury to Adam Thomas, who faces a nervous wait to discover the extent of the damage to his right knee.
Gannon said: “You can see what Ben’s got in terms of his turn of pace, he’s a typical winger who wants to stay wide.
“We need to get him to play off his shape and get into pockets and get involved in the play, but he’ll be a good addition.”
Matty Warburton will return to the squad for the opening-day clash at Spennymoor having been unavailable at the weekend but a frustrated Adam Thomas looks set for a lengthy stint on the side-lines once more.
Pioneer sponsors away shirt and Cheadle End
Pioneer Group has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with Stockport County to include the Cheadle End roof, naming rights and the club’s brand new away shirt.
Pioneer, a national company with their head office in Stockport, have signed a deal to sponsor the club until 2020.
The company’s logo will go on the away shirt for the next three seasons, across the front of the Cheadle End and on the roof of the Cheadle End, making it visible to aircraft using Manchester International Airport
The Cheadle End will be formally renamed the Pioneer Group Cheadle End, and the company will also be County’s Official Technology Partner for the next three season.
County’s commercial manager Simon Dawson said: “This is one of the biggest deals we have been able to agree at this football club since dropping out of the Football League.
“The commitment from Pioneer is a tremendous vote of confidence in our club and I’m delighted we are entering into a long-term relationship with such a dynamic company, based right here in Stockport.”
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