PAUL Hurst believes his side are more than ready for the start of the new campaign after rounding off their pre-season preparations with a win at Brigg Town.
A youthful Mariners side ran out 2-1 winners at the Hawthorns last night thanks to first-half goals from Jon-Paul Pittman and Lewis Bemrose.
Unsurprisingly, given the unfamiliarity of their line-up, Town weren't always at their fluid best.
But speaking afterwards, Hurst, who enjoyed more of a watching brief in the dugout, was satisfied with his side's performance.
"It was more relaxed for me, with Stuart Watkiss more prominent, but I thought we played well," he said.
"It was a different formation and we were trying to play a system that worked for the pros, so there weren't too many that were far out of position.
"I thought we started the game extremely well and played some excellent football but then we started looking for things that weren't there the longer the game went on.
"It wasn't as free-flowing in the second half, but overall, it was a good work-out and got lads some minutes in the legs, which was especially important for those that are suspended for the start of the new season."
PICTURES: Grimsby Town at Brigg
Reflecting on his side's preparations for the new campaign, which starts with Saturday's lunchtime clash at Bristol Rovers, Hurst added: "I've been pretty happy with pre-season – from the first game at Cleethorpes Town to last night against Brigg.
"We haven't picked up any serious injuries and the lads' levels have increased, you could see that from the way we started the game last night.
"I've been ready for the new season for about three weeks! In seriousness though, we're ready as a team now, but it doesn't matter how ready you feel – it doesn't always mean you'll get the result.
"But we've been waiting for it for a while now and sometimes it seems to drag because you desperately want to get to that first game and let all the proper games begin.
"Now last night is out of the way, I'm really looking forward to Saturday and we know we couldn't have asked for a much tougher opening game – we'll see what it brings."
