Exeter City Manager Matt Taylor has given his first pre-season update, as the Club returns to action with group training sessions at the Cliff Hill Training Ground ahead of the pre-season scheule.
With the players will return for a full pre-season on Thursday, June 25, the club has put on optional sessions for players to continue their fitness work.
“I don’t want to make myself sound old but gone are the days of lads going off for six weeks and drinking themselves to the bottom of a pint glass, which we'd all do every now and then, and then come back and work hard just before pre-season.
“The modern day player doesn't really lose fitness, but in terms of the mental aspect, it's important they get back with a ball at their feet amongst other players and also do a little bit of fitness work amongst other players, because we can distribute a fitness plan, which is fantastic and they do all their running, but they're only really fighting against themselves or pushing against themselves or their competition.
“Players need each other, need each other to thrive off, need each other to move off in terms of getting their rhythm, of their fitness and their game. It's so important we put on these group sessions, so we'll have one today, tomorrow, Thursday, Friday, back into this week, the same the following week, and then we're ready to come back into it.
“I expect all players to attend at least one or two of those days, and it also allows us to get our eyes on them as well, see if we need to fill in the gaps in the next couple of weeks, or speed up a few processes, or push a few fitness elements, but also means we're not chasing it on our first couple of days a pre-season.”
City’s pre-season schedule is now set in stone, with a couple in-house games and trips to Truro City, Weston-super-Mare and Torquay United, before hosting Championship side Bristol City at St James Park on August 1.
“We then we go into the Carabao Cup fixture, which is unknown as yet and another fixture to look forward to. It is a Cup competition where we want to be progressing, and another game which gets us ready for the League campaign.
“There are some great games for our fans to attend a couple of in-house games as well, which is always par for the course. The ones which stick out the Torquay one on the Friday night and the Bristol City one on the Saturday, with one a local derby of such, which is always a fantastic test and a great game to play in.
“And then the Bristol City match back at the Park in front of our fans. It’s an opportunity for our fans to see not only new signings, but those young players who they have seen the names of, but probably not seeing them play regularly. It’s also a great opportunity to see where they might fit into our group this season, and then our fans will start to get a feeling, an expectation of what we might look like from the start of the season.
“I've said for a while now, this team will evolve over time. It will get better, it will grow naturally because we're such a young group at this moment in time, we're going to have to be patient with them. There's going to be inconsistencies, but a team will get better if we support it in the right way.”
The work hasn’t stopped since the end of the 25/26 season, with Matt acting quickly to make his first signing of the summer – experienced winger Gwion Edwards.
Speaking about bringing Gwion to Devon, Matt Taylor said: “He is a good player. His game time at a higher level has probably been limited due to body issues, but the last couple of seasons his gametime and availability was excellent.
“Gwion is a very good player. Opportunities at a higher level have probably been limited by injury issues earlier in his career, but over the last couple of seasons his availability and game time have been excellent.
“He is an outstanding attacking player who can create chances in the final third, beat defenders one-on-one, deliver crosses with either foot and finish with both feet.
“From the time I've spent with him over the last few weeks, I've been really impressed by him as a person. I'm looking forward to seeing how he settles during pre-season, how his qualities fit into our style of play and working environment, and how his experience can positively influence some of the younger players at the club.
“He brings a wealth of experience and has enjoyed a remarkable journey throughout his career. I want players who are eager to join us, embrace what we're building and are hungry for success. Gwion will be an important part of our senior group moving forward.”
When asked about plans for the transfer window, Matt said: “I think it’s currently a little bit of unknown. I think there's a false market at this moment in time with it being so early in the window and whether that's players expectations, agents’ expectations, club expectations, there's always a falseness to that. So, there's a lot of conversations we're not involved in. I'm quite comfortable with that because we know where we are financially.
“We know our budget, we know what we want in terms of positions and profiles, and I've mentioned about character being so important. There are a lot of conversations that will come back around to us.
“We are looking to strengthen certain areas of the pitch and outside of the pitch was certainly one of them. To get Gwion through the door early on is a real big plus and takes a little bit of pressure on what's to come in the next couple of weeks, I'd love to work towards another signing of a certain stature, a certain experience, so hopefully that will come sooner rather than later.
“We are going to be reactive to our own situation in-house when we see the players first, and I know we've done a little bit of training today, but when we see their players first and when the group are all together in pre-season, where we're sure what's needed, where the fitness levels are, where the availability markers are, because there's still players in there, a certain bracket or a certain time in terms of their career where they've had serious injuries and coming back to fitness or hopeful fitness, but also then seeing where the strengths and weaknesses lie.
“And we must be ready for players to move on from this football club as well. So, all options are open. There's a simplicity to our work at the moment. Not to say we're not working our absolute socks off, and we are being as diligent as we possibly can in terms of what can be achieved.”