GAINSBOROUGH TRINITY manager Brian Little will not over-exert his players in pre-season friendlies ahead of the Blues' new campaign in Blue Square Bet North.

The former Stoke boss is starting his first full season in charge at the Northolme after successfully dragging the Blues away from the relegation zone last season.

He has signed half a dozen new players and managed to persuade the likes of Gavin Cowan, Lewis McMahon and Luke Beckett to commit for another season in an attempt to break into the top five of the division.

With several new additions, Little is conscious that things may take time to come together but is confident that his training plan will have his new-look squad firing on all cylinders come the first game of the season.

"I am hoping it will not take us too many games and training sessions to get used to what I want from the players and hopefully we will be ready to get stuck in by the start of the season," said Little.

"We will be having some games but I am also going to be putting together a series of training exercises.

"The players will definitely need time on the pitch but I don't think they need seven full games before the season starts.

"I will be trying different things and it won't necessarily be the team that starts the season that is played in the pre-season games, although by the final match, I would have thought I will have an idea of what I am going to do.

"But I want to use pre-season as a chance to try different players in different positions."