Midfielder Jack Bridge has settled quickly following his summer move to Cumbria and, with two pre-season goals to his name already, he confirmed that scoring consistently is one of his aims as he looks to bed into the more central role he’s been used in through United’s run of friendly fixtures.
“I’m enjoying the football we’re playing,” he said. “I love the type of football we’re trying to play. We’re constantly working on what we should be doing and I’m enjoying getting on the ball as much as I have been.
“What I’m being asked to do by the gaffer suits the way I like to play. Over the last few seasons I’ve been asked to play out wide, but I do prefer playing more centrally, which is what I’ve been doing so far.
“When I met the manager during the off-season he told me that he wants to see more goals from me. I feel that playing in the central position, along with the way we want to play, that I’ll definitely be able to contribute more this season than what I’ve done in the past.
“Playing where I have been has got me a couple of goals so far, and it’s always nice to get a few. One of them was a header and I don’t usually ever even head the ball, so that was a bit different for me.
“It was a great ball from Christie [Elliott] and as it came in I knew I had to get there. It just sort of hit my head - luckily it went in!”
With some tough training sessions still to do, and with temperatures reaching record levels, he commented: “It’s like we’re on a pre-season tour in Spain or somewhere, it’s the hottest I’ve ever trained in.
“Obviously once you start playing all that’s on your mind is that you’re pressing and you need to be running, or doing whatever, but when you get a second to rest you start to realise just how hot it really is.
“Hopefully come the first game of the season we’ll feel the benefit of it all. That’s when the boys will be flying and all of the work we’ve done will be worth it.
“This pre-season has been extremely tough with everything we’ve done, it’s all been at such a high intensity and it’s been relentless. That should mean we’ll be more than ready when we go into the games.”
Next on the agenda is the trip to Dingwall to face Ross County in what everyone expects will be another tough encounter.
“It’s our last game of the pre-season bit of things so we’re looking forward to it,” he told us. “I’d never been to Scotland before I came up here, so that will be interesting as well.
“That game and the week of work ahead is all about being ready for Crawley, and I’m just looking forward to the season starting now, to be honest.”
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