Loft speaks ahead of season opener
Port Vale captain Doug Loft is ready to help the Valiants get off to a winning start when they welcome Brentford to Vale Park on Saturday for the opening fixture of the Sky Bet League 1 campaign.
With pre-season almost over, a new season awaits Micky Adams and his squad, midfielder Loft admits pre-season has been his toughest under the gaffer.
“The beginning of the season is important it’s good to get off to a good start.
“We have been working hard during pre-season and going full fitness going into the first game.
“I’ve done a lot of pre-seasons with the gaffer and I would say this is probably the hardest I’ve done,” he told Valiant Player.
Vale have had to manage a host of late injuries during pre-season but with Loft one of the player back fit the captain expects everyone to come through before the season kicks off on Saturday.
“The lads look fit and sharp and everyone is raring to go.
“I’m fit, I’m normally very fit and I don’t really lose my fitness anyway.
“I think having a good pre-season helps prevent having injuries later on in the season, I think I’ve had a good pre-season this year,” he said.
“You have a lot of games at the start of the season and they come fast, you’re playing a lot of minutes so obviously you are more likely to pick up knocks.
“If you’re fit and had a good pre-season you are obviously ready for the games and you should be all right.”
With new additions across the pitch, Vale will have a bigger squad than in previous years and club captain Loft is confident everyone can do their job when called upon over the season.
He said: “There is a good group of lads down there, everyone is looking forward to the season and I think we have built on last year and added additions to the squad.
“I think we have a good squad going into the season and everyone is looking forward to it.
“We’ve got a bigger squad this year, which will be important, you need a lot of players throughout the season.”
He added: “We’ve got a lot of players that can play in a lot of positions, there is a lot of choice for the gaffer and I’m sure whoever he picks will go out there and do well for the team.”