PREPARATIONS are back in full swing at Braywick Park, as Maidenhead Rugby Club brace themselves for a tough and potentially bruising campaign in South West Division 1.
Having won promotion last term, coach Simon Edwards is now coming to terms with the enormity of the task ahead.
He said: “It's a huge challenge. There's no doubt, since we left it, South West 1 has become semi professional.
“I don't know how good we are and I won’t know until we've played a couple of league games.
“But if teams like Barnstaple are getting relegated you know it's very strong.
“We'll know within the first month if we're going to play a part in promotion.
“So I'm excited but slightly on edge.”
The PowerGen Cup draw has dealt Edwards a helping hand, providing Maids with a home tie against Brixham on August 28.
Coach Edwards said: “I’m pleased it's at home, and I'm pleased it's against a South West side.
“It'll get us atuned to the league season ahead.”
Also to this end, there has been a change in Maids’ friendly fixtures, with the promised clash against demoted Barnstaple now taking place on August 21 in Devon.
Edwards added: “Then we can hit the league running.”
A key element in the campaign will be Edwards’ much vaunted coaching and fitness team, which he assembled at the beginning of last season.
Edwards explained: “When I came back onboard as coach the first thing I did was appoint Paul Jelski as my SAQ (speed, agility and quickness) coach.
“He had a specific job to do and he worked very, very hard at it.
“Without any doubt he's part of the reason we had one of our best ever seasons for injuries. That's a massive credit to Paul.
“And it allowed me to concentrate solely on the rugby. Bob Wells was also part of the deal when I came back.
“He's not a qualified coach, but he's learning week by week.
“And when you add Allan Greene into that, you're starting to put together quite a powerful coaching team.”
Edwards is also assembling a pretty powerful playing squad, with recent additions including former Henley regulars Dave Knight and Ben Ayres, former Maidenhead Colt and Scottish under 19 international Will Lowden, and South African winger Martin Fourie.
With several other key players returning from long-term injury, the 2004-5 season promises to be a very exciting one.