Warrington Town manager Mark Beesley was pleased to see his side match up with League Two side Accrington Stanley at Cantilever Park on Tuesday night.
Luke Duffy and Connor Woods scored in a 3-2 defeat, with all five goals coming in the first half, against John Coleman’s side who were only relegated from League One at the end of last season.
Beesley said: “It was a great game, it was really end to end at times in the first half. From our point of view, to go and match a team that’s just come out of League One for large parts of the game is pleasing.
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“They showed a bit of quality with their goals and we were probably a little bit sloppy at times, especially with the one from a set-piece. But we more than matched them and we scored a couple of great goals and created chances.”
Mitch Duggan had his first run out of pre-season and three trialists, who all played in the recent win at Prescot Cables, also featured.
With just over three weeks to go until the National League North opener away at Southport, Beesley has been happy with the performance of his players and also the chance to see several youngsters that he sees as important to the club’s future.
He added: “The quality of our players is there for all to see.
“We’ve got something in the pipeline that will get announced soon. We’re probably one player short, but I don’t think we can do anything with the situation at the club and what needs doing. It’ll be a case of just go along with what we’ve got and if something becomes available, maybe a loan, then that may be a possibility.
“It’s important that the young lads continue their education by playing, so just having them around in case they are needed for a sub or to make the bench is probably not ideal for them or for us moving forward.
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“We’ve got some really good young lads that in a year to 18 months will be really pushing to get in to this team. We spoke about looking after the long-term for the club as well, and that’s what it’s about. We’ve got young lads who will be out playing non-league football at a lower level than us, but we’ve got them, we’re not searching for them.”
Following promotion to National League North, it creates the option for young players to be dual-registered with clubs in the Northern Premier League, to help provide regular game time for their development.
Last season, the likes of Josh Murray, Lewis Sinnott and Alex McNally all spent time at North West Counties clubs after spending pre-season with the Yellows.
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