Whites all set for kick-off

Tommy Kincaid’s side go into this weekend’s game (kick-off 3pm) after a full pre-season that included both positives and negatives.

Distillery have brought in no less than six new signings including former Donegal Celtic duo Denver Taggart and Kevin Hughes.

After a disappointing end to the last camapaign Kincaid was in an optomistic mood, hopeful that his side could challenge by closer to the top of the table, at least reaching the top six.

The former Ards manager also was happy with the way his new signings has fitted in to the squad.

“With a group of young kids now at the club, they have really got to know eachother very well, which is a positive before the big kick off on Saturday,” said the boss.

Kincaid also said that more ins and outs were still possible at New Grosvenor:

“Transfer activity never stops for a manager. If you think that you can add to the squad, you will certainly enquire about the player’s availability .”

Kincaid went on to say that he thought pre-season went well as a whole, considering the Whites had three Irish League teams to play in the form of Ballymena , Glentoran and Dungannon Swifts.

The boss said he was “happy enough” with the way the players were settling down ahead of the competitive Championship One fixture list .

The Whites will be keen not to read too much into the results against Ballymena United and Dungannon, both games ending in heavy defeats and Glentoran resulting in a 1-0 loss.

Saturday will be a tough test for the Whites as Ards have also done exceptionally well in the transfer market bringing in former Distillery players Ben Browne and Joe McDonnell who are both expected to feature in the midfield against their former employers on Saturday .

Saturday’s match is then followed up by the opening home game of the season as the Whites host Ballyclare Comrades at New Grosvenor on Wednesday (12th August), who the Whites have beaten in five of the last six meetings between the teams.