Workington Reds’ players will be pushing for a place in the side for the first league game when they play their penultimate pre-season friendly tonight.

Gari Rowntree expects the competition in the squad to ramp up ahead of their Evo-Stik Premier League season start at home to Stafford Rangers on August 18.

Reds are set to host Keswick at Borough Park tonight (7.30pm kick-off), with free admission for spectators, and Rowntree believes the intensity will go up a notch as players look to cement their place in the team.

He said: “You can train as much as you want but the games help massively for match fitness.

“It’s not very long until we start now and I don’t know for sure but I’d think they’ll be narrowing down what team they want to start the first game.

“There are still a few lads on trial so they’ll be competing for positions in the squad and we’ve got lads coming back from injury so there should be good squad depth and competition.”

Rowntree has rarely enjoyed a pre-season without disruption in his career, with injuries tending to come at the end of the previous campaign.

But the experienced defender has been untroubled this summer and is feeling good ahead of the season.

“I’ve done a lot more than I did last preseason,” he said.

And he expects the additions of Jason Walker and Niall Cowperthwaite in particular to give joint-managers Dave Hewson and Lee Andrews a boost this year, with more options to change things up and rest players after the small squad Reds battled on with last season.

Reds have missed-out on Keswick-based striker Steven Rigg who has just signed a one-year deal with National League side Gateshead.

Rigg finished last season with the Reds before getting off to the States to spend part of the summer with Erie Commodores FC.

It was well-known that 26-year-old Rigg, who spent two years as a professional with Carlisle United, wanted to try and stay in the full-time game.

If that hadn’t worked-out Reds joint boss Dave Hewson was hopeful of recruiting Rigg for the Borough Park club.