"Exciting times" ahead for AFC Telford United - boss Kevin Wilkin
Kevin Wilkin says there are "exciting times" ahead for AFC Telford United as he prepares his side for the forthcoming season in the National League North.
Telford opened pre-season with a 1-0 defeat at Harborough Town on Saturday and will continue preparations for the new season by welcoming local rivals Shrewsbury Town to Bucks Head on Tuesday night.
The Bucks secured a return to the sixth-tier after a two-year hiatus following a memorable 4-2 comeback victory over Kettering Town in the Southern Premier Central.
And boss Wilkin is looking forward to getting the season underway when the Bucks travel to King's Lynn Town on August 9.
"Had a good break and I'm buzzing to get back at it off the back of getting up the levels," Wilkin said.
"Getting back up to Step 2 is great for everybody. It's something to feel excited about.
"You look at the level of the teams we're going to play and the stadiums we're likely to visit. You can't help but be excited by it.
"And certainly excited by the players we've got in the group and there's a lot of younger players in there who without any shadow of doubt will go on and play at a better level.
"Hopefully that progression is quick and sees us to the forefront of where we want to be in this league season."
Despite opening pre-season with a defeat, Telford have a variety of tests ahead of them across their pre-season schedule.
After playing Shrewsbury, the Bucks travel to Shifnal Town and Hednesford Town either side of home games against Aston Villa under-21s and Connah's Quay.
They will then conclude pre-season against Wolves under-21s at Bucks Head and Wilkin feels the variety of opposition will leave his side in good stead for the regular season.
"Shrewsbury on the Tuesday will definitely be tough. We'll be without the ball for good periods but these are the tests you need through pre-season.
"You need those varying tests and hopefully that's exactly what we've got with our pre-season schedule.
"I want to be competitive in every game and I find it tough when you have to mix things around and manage people's minutes.
"But it's the right thing to do. The most important thing is that people get minutes into their legs and they start to develop those strong levels of fitness."
