IT’S been a mixed start to the season for Warrington Town, who followed the opening day defeat at home to Farsley with a comfortable victory at Lancaster on Tuesday night.
Farsley, who joined the Yellows in the play-offs last season, will undoubtedly be there or thereabouts come the business end of the campaign while it looks like the Dolly Blues may well be in for a long season of struggle after their capitulation at The Giant Axe.
We won’t know just where Warrington sit in the grand scheme of things until at least the first couple of months of the season, as teams find their way in the Evo-Stik Premier League.
One thing is for sure, the Yellows have recruited well and have got players of pedigree playing under Paul Carden, who continues to earn respect for the level of professionalism he brings to the tier seven club.
The reality of the situation is that last night, Warrington started with just two players who were at the club last season – goalkeeper Tony McMillan and striker Tony Gray – and as a result, it’s going to take time for the team to gel.
For the first 20 minutes last night, it seemed like that was a long way away – however the manner of their second and third goals, both well worked team goals involving the likes of Robbie Evans, Adam Hughes and James Caton, provided a glimpse of just how good the individuals in this team could be once they become a true team.
Carden will have no doubt wanted to keep more of the side that finished third last season, though his hands were tied by a restricted budget and a desire for several players to want to ply their trade up the leagues. Key players like Sean Williams, Liam Goulding and Rory McKeown departed, while the decision of Jamie McDonald to leave as he wasn’t able to commit for the season was a further blow.
Building a new team hasn’t been helped either by the injury to captain James McCarten, who will miss at least the first half of the season following surgery in the summer, and frustrations over international clearance which hasn’t yet come through for David Raven and Jack Mackreth, both excellent and experienced players in their own right.
Raven will likely slot in at centre half alongside Mark Roberts, to form a formidable defensive pairing, while the pacey Mackreth expects to score goals.
Luke George, who made his debut last night, looked assured and composed at the back, though may well play in central midfield, where Evans impressed alongside Ben Garrity.
One area the Yellows may need some spark is up front, with Gray, Richard Brodie and Josh Amis all very similar in terms of stature and style of play, but all more than capable of scoring goals.
The departure of McDonald hasn’t helped with that variation, though if Caton, Jack Dunn and Mackreth can chip in with goals, it may not be an issue.
Scoring goals was probably the main reason the Yellows didn’t win promotion and that will need to be addressed if they are to go one better.
As well as Farsley, it’s expected that the likes of Scarborough, South Shields and Gainsborough Trinity will be competing at the top end of the league, but such is the beauty of non-league football, any team will fancy their chances at a shot of the play-offs.
Next up for Warrington is the visit of Stalybridge Celtic on Saturday, a team that did the double over them last term – including a 2-0 defeat at Bower Fold which was the start of a sticky run in for the Yellows which saw them lose hope of a title challenge and ultimately ended in the play-off defeat to Grantham Town.
After that is a trip to newly promoted Bamber Bridge on Bank Holiday Monday.
