Hungerford Town fall to defeat in pre-season opener at Brimscombe and Thrupp

Hungerford Town began life without Ryan Seager and Sol Wanjau-Smith with a 1-0 defeat at Hellenic Premier League side Brimscombe and Thrupp on Tuesday, July 5.

A second half header from Brimscombe’s Jack Smith was the difference between the two sides at their picturesque Gloucestershire home, The Meadow.

There were chances for new signings Niko Muir and Leighton Thomas while Chris Flood also had an opportunity with a second half header, but The Crusaders found no way past Brimscombe’s Dan Brabham.

Nevertheless, manager Danny Robinson is confident “goals will come” as his 11 new signings continue to settle into life at Bulpit Lane.

He said: “It’s not an overnight thing, we’ve got 11 new players to bed in, and bed in quickly.

“The new lads have been doing brilliantly well in training, we’re really happy with what we’ve seen.

“We had 20 shots on goal but didn’t put the ball in the back of the net, they’ve had one shot and scored.

“It’s all about minutes and the players getting to know each other out on the pitch.

“We can do all the training we want, but the most important thing is when they cross the white line.”

Hungerford travel to League Two side Newport County this Saturday for a behind-closed-doors fixture and then host League One’s Oxford United on Tuesday, July 12.

“We’re really looking forward to testing ourselves, we’re massively excited,” said Robinson.

“They’re massive tests, huge tests, but that’s what I wanted from this pre-season.

“I’ve made it a shorter pre-season, but a harder pre-season, the games we’re playing are a lot tougher.

“Newport will be a different test to what we faced tonight, we might not touch the ball!”

Hungerford will be hoping to get off to a flying start at home to Concord Rangers when the National League South season kicks off on Saturday, August 6.

Hungerford will then make the 140 mile trip to newly relegated side Dover Athletic on August 12.

The Crusaders will host Farnborough on Boxing Day and travel to the Rushmoor Community Stadium for the reverse fixture on New Year's Day.

Robinson's side end the season with a difficult looking fixture at Ebbsfleet United on April 29.

“All the teams in this league are hard, but we’ll be prepared and we’ll be ready,” said Robinson.