Head coach John Kear says he has been impressed by the start his Widnes Vikings squad has made to pre-season training.
The majority of the squad have already returned for field and gym work, with preparations stepping up ahead of the Christmas period.
Among the players to have linked back up with the squad is Wales international Matty Fozard, who asked to return early from his winter break.
“It’s going really well,” Kear said. “The application of the players has been first-class, and that’s all you can really measure it with.
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“We feel that we’re being prudent and sensible with what we’re asking them to do, and they’re certainly applying themselves in the best possible way. I’m really pleased with where we’re at.”
It is a first full pre-season in the job for Kear, who took charge of the Vikings back in June.
He believes that players new and old have bought into his ideas, providing a positive atmosphere during sessions.
“The staff have been great. We’ve worked really well together, really hard together and really smartly together.
“I do feel that we’ve benefitted from that. You can see that we have an enthusiastic group, a hard-working group and a group with a bit of a spring in their step.”
On the impact of the Vikings’ new recruits, Kear added: “They’ve been excellent and brought something different.
“They’ve brought a hunger and a desire to cement a place in the team, and the more established players have noticed that as well.
“We’ve brought some smartness in as well, with some of the senior players recruited. They’ve offered an element and composure in terms of their rugby IQ.”
The club will return to action in January, with pre-season fixtures already scheduled at home to new dual-registration partners Rochdale Hornets on Sunday 15 January, before a trip to Oldham RLFC seven days later. A third friendly is set to be announced in the coming weeks.
And with a big squad at his disposal, Kear hopes the friendlies will incentivise his players to stake their claim for a place in the matchday squad when the 2023 Betfred Championship season commences.
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Discussing their recruitment, he said: “We went for the two-for-one philosophy. If you’ve got players vying for one spot, it automatically drives standards in training.
“Everyone is looking over their shoulder, thinking ‘he could step in’. It does make for intense, competitive training, and that’s exactly what we want.
“We’ve got two already [friendlies] arranged, and the likelihood of a third, which we’d be delighted about.
“We have a big squad, a squad with depth. The challenge will then be, ‘you’ll all get equal amounts of minutes, so get out there and give me problems selecting a 17’.
“I certainly hope they’ll do that, and I’m certainly confident that they can do that.”
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