Harrogate Town AFC

We've been chatting to Will Smith ahead of pre-season match against his former club…


 
Thought's on pre-season so far…

It's been good . Very demanding physically and mentally, putting the hours in and making sure everyone is up to speed. It's been tough but what we needed.

On how long it takes to get back up to full speed…

I think everybody is different, it all depends on your own body. Some are naturally fitter than others and some might take longer but over the first two weeks everybody has caught up and reached that baseline, hitting those levels.

We look a fit group at the moment, which is good. The running we've done has been tough and made it a tough 2-3 weeks.   

The importance of having time off this summer…

It was massively important. We needed some downtime to be able to relax, let the muscles relax, brain relax. It was tough physically and mentally, probably more mentally last year because the turn around was so quick.

The time off has been vital going into this season and its' good knowing we're going into the campaign ready to hit the ground running.

Assessing our pre-season matches…

I've enjoyed them. The first match against Huddersfield was a good test, getting 45 minutes. Then Brighouse, they tested us a lot more physically, getting into you. We've worked hard, pressing right and there is a few minor details that we need to work on but it's all starting to come together.

On returning to Darlington...

I'm looking forward to going back. It's a place full of good people, they've got good values and it's just a really good place. The lads are good as well so it's going to be enjoyable, especially seeing the fans as well.

#ProudToBeTown