SLIMBRIDGE manager Leon Sterling hopes to be able to make some squad decisions soon after a weekend of pre-season friendlies where he will assess new and existing players for the club’s second Evo-Stik Southern League Division One South and West campaign.

The Swans kicked-off their warm-ups with a 2-0 defeat at Bradford Town on Saturday, but Sterling was happy enough that ‘nobody let themselves down’.

Tonight, the manager takes the team up to Longlevens for another friendly for a chance to see again some men who took to the pitch on Saturday plus some who were unavailable.

He said after the game at Bradford-on-Avon: “The result aside, the good thing for me is that the lads from last year still look good players and, of the trialists, some were good and some need to get a bit fitter but that is what pre-season is all about.

“We lacked that sort of creative edge. Bradford scored the goal in the first-half which was a good finish and then our legs went in the last ten minutes because we only had three subs.

“So I am pleased, bearing in mind they had twenty lads and we only had 13. I know now a bit more than I did about the trialists and the good thing is that there are lads to come back In for Thursday who I know can do a job for me.

“It is just about getting the games In and, for the second-half of pre-season, hopefully I will have a squad that I am happy with and then you want to win football matches because you are closer to the season.

“We have two games on the weekend and then I can make decisions and the lads will have had a fair crack. Whatever happens, I try to be fair to them because I don’t want to keep them hanging until before the season starts.

“They will have had games then and, after those games, I will roughly know who is good enough. But today, nobody let themselves down which was the main thing.”

Slimbridge were, though, lacking in front of the net, and Sterling admitted his attackers will need to step up after the loss of top goal-scorer Paul Fahy to Evesham this month.

Fahy smashed in over twenty goals for the Swans last season, and his is a hole that Sterling wants to fill quickly.

“It is no secret that the cutting edge has never been there and the lads will be disappointed that they never created any chances so they will be more receptive to shooting because it something they need to work on.

“We have always been a hard working side but, no disrespect to Bradford, we controlled the game for a bit but we didn’t create any chances and that’s the thing we need to do. Hopefully they will embrace it in training.”

* The draw for the early rounds of both the FA Cup and FA Trophy has seen the Swans handed home ties in both competitions.

On August 20, they will be the hosts at Thornhill Park for an FA Cup preliminary Round tie against either Bedfont Sports or Windsor, who both play in the Combined Counties League.

These two clubs will play their Extra Preliminary Round tie on August 6, the day the Swans kick off their second Southern League campaign.

In the FA Trophy preliminary round, Slimbridge are at home to fellow Southern League South and West club Swindon Supermarine on October 8.

The winner of that tie will travel to either Taunton Town or Larkhall Athletic in the first qualifying round, scheduled for October 29.

* Slimbridge will be excitedly looking for the date they play newly-promoted Hereford FC when the league fixtures are released on Friday.

The new-look Bulls, who rose from the ashes of Hereford United when that team went bust in 2014, won the Midland Football League title in their first ever season and are managed by ex-Bristol Rovers and Bristol City striker Peter Beadle.

The expectation about Hereford's arrival in the Division One South and West league is so high because they have sold an astonishing one thousand season tickets with big away support expected.