Well that's it then! Pre-season over and done with! Management off, Manager in, Manager out, Managers In! Players Off Players In! After the whirlwind of changes down at Hurst Cross this Saturday (17th August) finally sees Ashton United about to kick a ball 'in anger'. The opening day of the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Premier Division season sees Grantham Town making the long journey from Lincolnshire.

After a closed season break that has seen just so many comings and goings the new joint management team of Paul Phillips and Steve Halford will get the chance to present their final selection to the fans. We just hope that they are not as much in the dark as the fans seem to be because the influx of new faces has left us all with a lot of new names to remember.

The new squad seem to have gelled well as a unit with a great team spirit prevailing in pre-season matches but all that will count for nothing if they don't carry it on to the pitch for the League season. We can be optimistic, we have leadership, we have team spirit, we have faith.

Get yourself along to Hurst Cross, with friends hopefully, to see the Robins in action. Kick off is at 3pm