Ryan Perks' Pre-Season Update
Argyle Women’s Head Coach Ryan Perks has reiterated the need to not worry about results in the opening fortnight of pre-season, but to focus on the development process.
This weekend sees the squad's return to Devon, with Perks hopeful that the ideas and beliefs learnt in games against Moneyfields and Cardiff City can come to fruition against Yeovil Town.
On Sunday, the Pilgrims host the Glovers at Manadon Sports Hub, in the Greens' first pre-season fixture in Plymouth. Two days later, the squad will travel to Coach Road, Newton Abbot, for a tie with Torquay United on Tuesday night.
“It’s nice to be playing back in Plymouth for the first time in a while,” Perks said. “Hopefully the weather is sunny, and we can get many fans in to get behind the girls, to see some new and familiar faces.
“With the first two games, results haven’t gone the way we would’ve necessarily liked but that’s pre-season. It’s not about that. It’s about getting minutes in the legs and gelling as a squad.
“We’ve had players on trial. We’ve tried to even the teams out as much as possible, we’ve swapped players at half-time, and it’s just about getting those minutes under our belts.
“This Sunday, it’s important to get the whole squad minutes, but we have four weeks until the season starts, so we want to start getting that team together and the links between players. That’s the aim this weekend.”
Last week, Argyle faced UEFA Champions League qualification side Cardiff City, with a strong second-half performance from the Pilgrims being a key talking point after the full-time whistle. Ryan believes the opportunity to face teams of different quality can help prepare the squad for a gruelling FA Women’s National League Southern Premier Division campaign.
“We’ve got games against tougher teams, some around our level and some below, so that we can work on different aspects of our games,” he said.
“Against Cardiff last week, it allowed us to work out of possession a bit more. At half-time, we addressed the change in structure for the second half, what we needed to do - and the players took that on board.
“This week we’ve emphasised what we need to do on the ball and how we want to play, so hopefully we can see that come out on Sunday.
“Moving forward, we’re aiming to combine the two before we face Manchester United under-21s and Bridgwater, and that’s where we’ll be looking at performance levels and be more focused on results ahead of the first league game against Cheltenham.”
Tickets are available for Sunday’s game against Yeovil Town at Manadon Sports Hub, which kicks off at 2pm. Click here to purchase tickets.
