WARRINGTON Town are busy preparing for their second season in National League North, which gets underway with a trip to King’s Lynn Town on August 10th.
It’s been a busy off-season off the field for the club, who completed the ground development work required at Cantilever Park, since renamed to the Cal.Delivery Stadium as part of a multi-year sponsorship deal.
A new kit partnership with Capelli Sports has seen a new home and away kit launched, and the club is close to opening a new Warrington Town retail outlet up the road from the ground on Knutsford Road.
Their first signing of the summer saw the return of popular midfielder Bohan Dixon, who is just two shy of 200 appearances for the club, following a brief spell at Macclesfield.
They have since added four new faces, all of whom have featured during the pre-season campaign.
Josh Miles
Young winger Josh Miles, a loan signing from Blackpool, scored a hat-trick in the most recent friendly, a 3-3 draw against Oldham where the Yellows came from 3-0 down.
Miles capitalised on two howlers from Oldham goalkeeper Magnus Norman, before tucking away a smart finish from the left after great footwork and long ball by Connor Woods.
The 17-year-old was bought for an undisclosed fee by Football League side Blackpool last summer, after he broke through at Southport, playing 15 games as a 16-year-old in National League North.
Formerly with the Steven Gerrard Academy, he will fill the void left by Matt Grivosti, banned for the opening three games of the season due to his red card against Hereford in the final home game of last season.
Murphy Bennett
Shortly after the arrival of Miles was announced, the Yellows confirmed the signing of versatile defender Murphy Bennett, who has featured throughout the pre-season programme.
The 19-year-old was a Manchester City junior, and spent the last three years as a professional with Football League side Forest Green, before making the move north west and returning to his Stockport roots.
Bennett said: “I think the friendlies have gone well. The team have gelled well together, and personally I think I’ve done well so far.
“I want to play as much as I can this season and strive for the ambitions that the club have set.”
Ollie Southern
Bennett will be a contender for the right-back position alongside the club’s first new signing of the summer, classy defender Ollie Southern.
Southern played in National League North for Hereford last season, and has impressed with his composure and quality on the ball playing at full-back and centre-back in the friendlies.
He was at Manchester United as a junior and earned a scholarship at Crewe Alexandra, where he played in the year above Yellows midfielder Matty McDonald.
His senior career has seen him play in the Europa Conference League for Welsh Premier League club Bala Town, where he also won the Welsh League Cup.
Yellows manager Mark Beesley said: “Ollie was someone we knew, and who we’ve done a lot of homework on.
“He played in this league last year and did reasonably well, and he’s a local lad. Once we were alerted that he was available, it was something we thought let’s get him in and have a look and bed him in and give him time.
“Pre-season is about seeing if the lads fit and suit the way we want to do things, and he’s definitely done that.
“He’s gone from strength to strength and plays in a variety of positions, which in a small squad gives us the flexibility that we need.”
Joe Rodwell-Grant
Another player Beesley was pleased to bring in was striker Joe Rodwell-Grant, who has found the net in the games against Rochdale and Ashton United.
Rodwell-Grant, 21, has been at Wigan Athletic in recent seasons, though spent a lengthy spell on the sidelines with an Achilles injury.
He initially came through the ranks at Preston, and has played on loan at Bamber Bridge, Lancaster City and FC United.
Beesley added: “We’ve been after Joe for a while now. We tried to sign him a couple of times when he was at Wigan, and so it’s third time lucky!
“He’s done really well in the games, he’s looked sharp and fit and that’s the key to it, giving him a platform to perform.”
Yellows fans will be hoping Rodwell-Grant can fill the goal void left by last season’s top scorer Isaac Buckley-Ricketts, who has made a surprising move to league rivals Curzon Ashton.
He is one of just two confirmed exits this summer, the other seeing long-serving midfielder Sean Williams depart to drop two leagues and join Bootle.
A third is likely in the shape of former Liverpool defender Andre Wisdom, who was part of early pre-season training at the Yellows but has since been on trial at Salford City as he looks to return to full-time football.
After the opening day trip to Norfolk, Warrington Town have five home games in six, after Farsley Celtic requested their game on the August Bank Holiday weekend was reversed due to pitch development work in Yorkshire.
That means Warrington Town will host games against Peterborough Sports (August 17), Kidderminster Harriers (August 24), Farsley (August 26), Needham Market (August 31) and Leamington (September 3) in the first few weeks of the season.
Their only other away trip in the opening seven rounds is a Tuesday night visit to old rivals South Shields (August 20).
Squad numbers for the new campaign are due to be released next week, ahead of the club’s annual season launch event at the Village Hotel on Wednesday August 7.
Further signings have not been ruled out, with a trialist forward catching the eye in recent games, scoring a goal in the defeat to Salford last week.
