EK coaches can’t wait to work with stars next week
East Kilbride gaffer Stevie Aitken admits excitement is building at K-Park as he prepares to work with his players for the first time.
The former Dumbarton boss joined Kilby in May, but the coronavirus shutdown has prevented him from getting on the pitch to prepare for the new Lowland League season.
That is set to change next week when EK kick-off their pre-season campaign and the squad – which includes nine summer signings – assemble for their maiden meeting.
Aitken, who is assisted by his brother Chris and Rangers legend Ian Durrant, said:“We are all hoping to be back on September 3.
“I’ve spoken to the players over the weekend and they are desperate to get back in.
“We are another day closer and we are excited to get into K-Park to start pre-season. Normally when you get appointed to a new job you are into the thick of things right away on the training field, but this is different.
“It’s been about a 12-week process of looking to get back in and that’s longer than we’ve ever had. It’s been long, it’s been frustrating, but we’ve been working hard behind the scenes, which a lot of people don’t see.
“The preparations in terms of recruitment have been good, and we’ve still got a wee bit to go in terms of that, but the next stage is working with the players, building up their fitness levels and getting ready for kick-off in October.
“Although we are close to training, it’s still August and we are still a good six weeks or so away from competitive football.
“But we are getting there step by step.”
The Lowland League campaign is set to kick-off on October 10 and
the fixtures are due to be released in the next fortnight. Kilby will get some games under their belt shortly, with pre-season friendlies being lined-up.
And Aitken has revealed some good tests will be lined up, once they get SFA approval for their friendlies.
He added:“We are just waiting for word from the SFA for when we can play the matches.
“I think from September 15 we will be able to play friendlies.
“We’ve spoken to five or six clubs and once we get confirmation, we’ll announce them. Opponents will range from Premiership teams to West of Scotland League sides.
”That’s what we’ve got lined up and once we’ve got it confirmed what we have to do in terms of testing and other procedures, hopefully we’ll be able to let the supporters know.”
The Lowland League title favourites are still on the hunt for more players, having seen the likes of ex-Partick Thistle striker Kris Doolan and former Dumbarton defender Gregor Buchanan both escape their grasp in the last week.
But Aitken says no new recruits are forthcoming at this stage.
He added: “I’m looking for a select group of players now, so these things take a bit of time.
“We just have to keep working on them and see what goes through.”