TIVIDALE Joint Manager Ross Thorpe felt it was a good workout for his players in their opening pre-season 3-0 friendly defeat at Bedworth United.

Dale were the better side in the opening period but fell to three second half goals at The Oval following numerous changes to both sides.

And the 33-year-old was satisfied with his players’ efforts on a warm afternoon in Warwickshire.

“I thought we played some excellent stuff in the first half, created numerous chances and missed the penalty,” Thorpe said.

“These games are about working on shape, improving fitness and working towards the season opener. It’s clear that we have some good, technical footballers but we need to work on some specific areas.

“I was pleased with the effort of our lads but I would like to think that although this was only a friendly, we will start putting the chances we’ve had today in the back of the net.”

The former Alvechurch boss is also hopeful of making further progress in the transfer market over the next month.

He added “We have the core squad together now, and one or two trialists are still pushing for me and Phil (Male) to sign them.

“The plan is to train hard again this week and look ahead to our next game on Saturday at Heath Hayes.

“This team is still very much a work in progress but there were some very positive signs in the game for us to take.”