Ian Pethick

Is that the ex Torquay and Argyle youth player Jayden Gilbert playing upfront for Falmouth? Penzance did well to sign Oscar Massey. No offence to them, but he is probably a couple of levels below where he should be. Seem to remember him being highly rated at Argyle as a youngster (same as Rhys Shirley, who seems to have disappeared after picking up a serious injury). Might be a good thing though for him to play every week and enjoy his football after barely playing at Swindon, and going out on loan to 3 different clubs last season.

Remember it well Steve. Only a few months after his Wednesday side had been beaten twice in cup finals (to Arsenal on both occasions). They brought a full strength team down including the likes of Chris Woods, Des Walker, John Sheridan, Carlton Palmer, Chris Waddle and David Hirst and there was also a large contingent of Wednesday fans present. They put on a real show on the pitch, and stuck around for a long time afterwards signing autographs.

Just read reports that Trevor Francis has died. The best footballer to have come from Plymouth?

Is it confirmed that Darren Stewart has left Blazey? Would think that if he has departed, then it would be a blow for them. Very highly rated coach, and would have no doubt brought some of the promising youngsters from Ivybridge with him. See today also that former Torquay Utd midfielder Scott Piper, having been announced as joining St Blazey, has now joined Tavistock.

Very sad news, all indicative of the demographic shift in that part of Cornwall though. An ageing population with youngsters not sticking around in the area through a lack of employment and educational opportunities, and also having no chance of ever being afford to buy (or even rent) properties to live in. Local football is merely the "canary in the mine" regarding this.

Good to see that Ben Waters is back on the Cornish scene. Like Stuart Bowker, a great character that everybody has an opinion on. It certainly won't be boring with "The Waltz" leading the attack.

Not going to comment on the match as I wasn't there, and haven't spoken to anybody that was, but (from reading both club's Twitter feeds) their widly different accounts do make me wonder if the same game was watched. Watched Karl Curtis's after the game, and it seemed to be a very honest account of how pre season has gone, and is progressing,with a couple of weeks to go until it gets going properly. It did appear as well that inadvertently let slip the identity of goalscoring "Trialist A." Agree with Sportsman10's assessment of the squad, does look light at centre back and centre forward and would still think there'll be players coming in (possibly on loan). Looks promising so far though, but it will all become clearer a month or so into the start when sense can be made of the relative strengths of recruiting/retention from their rivals.

Full time football must have been a factor.

Don't think Finlay Craske was one of the them. Played for Torquay v Argyle on Tuesday night, and sounds like he had a good game. Doubt you'll ever find out (officially anyway) who the trialists were.

Things seem to have been reassuringly quiet at Saltash this summer, which has made the keyboard warriors on here move on.. In amongst the bulk of players that have followed Macca Brown from Millbrook, a couple of signings stand out. The already talked about return of Reece Thompson from Mousehole, and also the addition of Dylan Jones to their squad. He's a player that they have high hopes for at Parkway after scoring lots of goals for their successful under 18's last season, and has appeared in all of their PSF's so far. It seems likely that he'll go out on loan this season as part of his development, one to watch if this is with The Ashes

Thinking that the use of Bolitho Park must be limited in pre season, as Parkway only have 2 out of their 6 PSF's scheduled to be played there. Guessing that work on the pitch must still be ongoing. Envious glances must have been cast at the likes of Parkway, Liskeard, Mousehole and Tavistock by City for them being able to host money spinning matches and test themselves against higher ranked opposition. The lack of a home ground has really hurt them in that respect. Planning to catch Truro in NLS on several occasions this coming season (starting with Braintree away on August 12th), so I'm looking forward to seeing how they fare. Some what I would call "proper non league clubs " (as long as a couple relatively recent Football League outfits) in the NLS , so it will be a definite leap in quality. Be interesting to see if their fans will travel in numbers down to Bolitho as well. The squad looks a little light in terms of numbers, but notice that they are still looking at trialists and would think that Paul Wotton will again use the loan market to bolster them. My initial feeling is that mid table will be a big achievement for City (Taunton Town, champs of the Southern Prem South in 2021/22 took time to settle in and ended up finishing 14th last time around).The main objective will probably be to ensure they are a step 2 club for the 2024/25 season in, hopefully, their new home.

Has Reece Thomson left the club? Not seen him feature in the pre season games, and notice on Full Time that he's signed on for Saltash in the Western League.

Millbrook look like big losers from the collapse of the SWPL/WL merger. The current state of the club makes you appreciate the miracles that Macca Brown was achieving in keeping them competitive. Fingers crossed, and hoping that they find their feet once the season proper starts.

How many consecutive seasons is that now for Mark Vercesi in the SWL/SWPL? Must be at least 20.

Coach leaves from Penzance next Thursday at 6.30am. Various pick up points along the way..😀

Just saying that as a guide to the season ahead, (for many reasons) it's debatable how useful PSF's are. Tavi are a good side (finished on the fringes of the play offs last season), but the Southern League Div 1 is a completely different proposition.

No offence to Tavi, a club that has done incredibly well to get to this position and become a force at step 4 level, but a few pre season friendly wins against SWPL opposition probably won't count for much once the league gets underway. Southern League Division 1 is a very different proposition.

Is that the ex Argyle Youth striker Oscar Massey? Ex Swindon, featured for Parkway and Tavi on loan last season.

Just adds to my general feelings about pre season friendlies. With the exception of the high profile games against league opposition, I'm sure the level of hype surrounding what are, effectively, training sessions is a relatively new phenomenon.

The Parkway line up wasn't publicised or circulated. No idea why not.

https://gorunners.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster/harry--downing/5321 One of a growing group of Cornish youngsters who are making an impression in college "soccer" in the USA. Jude Boyd (Mousehole), Marcello Jones (Falmouth) and Sam Wickens (Wadebridge) are others. Believe James Ward of Falmouth is active in recruitment and scouting for this.

Eye witness thoughts from the Bald One over in the pre season friendly section.

At first glance, only three Parkway home league matches up until the New Year clash with Argyle being at Home Park on the same Saturday (from the point of view of the club's coffers, this doesn't include Boxing Day). Of course, inclement weather and FA Cup/Trophy ties for both Parkway and Truro will likely drive a coach and horses through a large chunk of this fixture list anyway. A minimum of 44 league games to be played on Bolitho this season (compared to last season's 42), this will test the ground staff's skills.

If true, sad but not surprising news.

Cheers Dave.