McKenna: I'll remain loyal to my players
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LOYALTY goes a long way and Wick boss Tom McKenna hopes his own will be rewarded by his players as Academy get their pre-season under way.
The Scorries face Scottish Championship side Ross County at Harmsworth Park on Saturday in their first friendly of the summer.
Other fixtures will include meetings against Orkney AFA and Cumbernauld Colts as well as a glamour friendly against Premiership side Hibs.
For fans expecting to see a clutch of new signings in black and white, chairman James Innes’s comments when the club failed to persuade striker Steven Anderson to stay on – “we run our club with a debit card mentality and not a credit card one” – should have warned them that new faces might be few and far between.
McKenna, who admits he has his eye on a couple of CAFA summer league players, insists that by and large Academy will be loyal to those who ended the 2017/18 campaign and have stayed on.
He said: “I’m going to be loyal to the players that played last season. We’ve a very good bunch of players who are determined and keen to do well for the club and we’ll be sticking with them.
“Losing Ando was disappointing but we’ve numerous attacking options we can choose from. Ando’s absence is an opportunity for someone to step up and make a name for themselves.
“We will probably promote some of the lads from the youth team and we are looking at a couple of players in the summer leagues. However, the squad will more or less be last season’s one.
“We do have four lads coming back in the frame for regular first-team football after long spells out with injury.
Jack Henry, Marc Macgregor,
Alan Farquhar and Davie Allan will be back and, even though it is a cliché, they will be like four new signings.”
McKenna is none the wiser who counterpart Stuart Kettlewell will bring up the A9 but is focusing instead on his own team’s preparations.
He added: “I’ve no idea whether or not Ross County are going to bring their strongest side or use this game to give their reserves and youths a run out.
“We’ll just go out and use the game to refine our match fitness. The lads have been working hard in training and I can’t fault their attitude – put it this way, we’ve had no absences because the World Cup is on the TV.
“However, nothing beats getting match fit so we’re looking forward to playing on Saturday.”
The game kicks off at 1pm.
Meanwhile, Wick Academy have been drawn away to Strathspey Thistle in the first round of the North of Scotland Cup. The tie will be played on August 1. Should they win, they will face a trip in the quarter-finals to either Clachnacuddin or Brora Rangers.
