Our first chance to knock the cobwebs off in preparation for the new season takesplace this coming Monday.
West Ham will be visiting the Vanarama National League side Boreham Wood at the 4,500 capacity Meadow Parkland stadium , in the first match of a pre-season fixture list that will see us in Australia, France and Germany.
It is somewhat strange to think that only a month ago, we were lifting the UEFA Europa Conference League trophy after our famous win over Italian side ACF Fiorentina.
Time certainly flies by these days !
Those who have not been playing for their countries be involved in Monday’s game. They could include the likes of Jarrod Bowen, Danny Ings, Kurt Zouma, Aaron Cresswell, Łukasz Fabiański and Pablo Fornals as could big Oggy – who signed a new, one-year deal with the Hammers this week.
This also an opportunity for our Supremo and his rapidly dwindling staff to have a look at some of our Academy prospects. It would nice to see the likes of Divin Mubama, Levi Laing, Kaelan Casey and Ollie Scarles to get a run out, as they will all be eager to impress.
Tickets for the game are available on Boreham Wood`s website and the Adult prices are £15, as are Over-65s. Under 18s can can get in for £10, while under-12s can buy their tickets for just £5.
We played them about the same time as this last season and escaped with a 1-1 draw, a portent of what how the Irons Premier League season would eventually turn out.
I remember only too well how Avram Grant’s Hammers won every pre-season friendly, then finished rock bottom in the Premier League in May 2011. Pre-season friendlies mean diddley-squat. Half of our Under-21’s will probably feature tomorrow, and anything less than a 4-0 West Ham victory will no doubt cause some of our miseries to declare that relegation is forthcoming next May! When will he see the first ‘Moyes Out’ plea? Did someone say they already have?