The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Players will need weeks to get fitness up, says Wilson
Mark Wilson has warned that when football finally receives the green light to begin again, the players will still need weeks to properly prepare for the big kick-off.
The Brechin boss, who played with distinction for Celtic and Dundee United, admits it will not be a case of simply putting the boots back on again and going straight back into competitive action.
However, with so much uncertainty over when football will finally come out of cold storage, Wilson is reluctant to give his part-time League 2 players a specific programme to follow.
The 35-year-old former defender said: “We pulled the plug on training as soon as we heard on the Friday afternoon that football was suspended.
“However, I don’t know if there is much point giving players a fitness plan.
“They are all about working towards a specific date but how can we do that?
“The players can’t go to a gym, or do other things.
“So our lads are just trying to keep themselves fit, probably like I do on a day-to-day basis.
“Since I retired, I cannot really do much with my knee but I still try to keep myself fit going out for runs on the road every day or every second day.
“That’s the way I have done it and the players just need to maintain a base level of fitness for when we come back.
“But that’s the thing - it’s not as easy as just saying football resumes on a certain date.”
Wilson insists that even if players have been ticking over during the lay-off, they will need a proper period of preparation to get back up to speed properly.
He added: “You need two weeks of a pre-season to get the players fit, you then need to play actual games to get them a touch of the ball before you go back into meaningful matches which is a headache within itself.
“It is such a big build-up period when players will have had so much time off.
“I understand people might think right, just get the boots back on and we will resume where we left off, but it was never going to be that easy.”