Weston manager Scott Bartlett insists they will only get in pre-season friendlies which are of real “value” to them as they returned to training ahead of the new campaign.

Weston Mercury: Weston line up outside the Grand Pier after their first training session of the summer. Picture: Will.T.PhotographyWeston line up outside the Grand Pier after their first training session of the summer. Picture: Will.T.Photography (Image: PLEASE CREDIT IN ANY IMAGES USED)

The Seagulls met up for the first time in four months on Saturday at Weston beach and Bartlett says their first session went well.

“It was good, we spent the morning on the seafront in the community,” said Bartlett on the club’s Facebook page.

“We did some work down there and we managed to tie it in with seeing some of the supporters, which was good. It was a nice turnout.

“We’ve been away for a long time haven’t we? It’s nice to get back and I thought it was important for us to be seen out and about in Weston.”

Weston Mercury: Weston line up outside the Grand Pier after their first training session of the summer. Picture: Will.T.PhotographyWeston line up outside the Grand Pier after their first training session of the summer. Picture: Will.T.Photography (Image: PLEASE CREDIT IN ANY IMAGES USED)

After training on the beach, Bartlett and his team headed to the FIFA 3G pitch for a 11-a-side match.

“The game we had at the end for 30 minutes was very competitive,” added Bartlett.

“You can see straight away there is a lot more competition for places really than we did last pre-season, especially in the early stages of it. From a competitive view point it was very pleasing.”

And with the season set to start in September, Bartlett knows the hard work starts now.

He said: “It’s about seven and a half weeks between now and when the season starts, we are going to have to put six weeks worth of work into that.

“We’re just finalising the games, trying to get a good balance of getting games that are of really some value to us as a squad. There could be two or three in the league above us, maybe a couple of Football League teams and then three or four leagues from down below.

“They will give us a really good test and they will be a good representation of what we are going to face and the only sticking point is we’re not sure about crowds yet.

“We hope by mid-August to get some people through the gates – that will have a big impact on us financially and for us to make it feel real going into the new season but we are really looking forward to it.

“It’s great to be back, we had every type of weather and we are looking forward to the start of the season.”