Neilston manager Andy Whiteford insists his side have nothing to fear as they prepare for First Division football in the coming season.
The Farmer’s Boys won the Second Division title in the 2024/25 campaign, bouncing back at the first attempt after relegation the previous term.
The East Renfrewshire outfit play their first competitive match next weekend as their West of Scotland Football League calendar gets underway with a home tie against Kirkintilloch Rob Roy.
Neilston have had three friendlies so far in their pre-season preparations, a 2-2 draw against Knightswood last weekend that was followed up with a 2-0 defeat against Largs Thistle during the week before a 3-3 draw with fellow Premier Division outfit Hurlford on Saturday.
Before the league campaign starts, Neilston take on two further top-flight teams in the shape of Arthurlie in the Kenny Hay Memorial Trophy this evening [Wednesday] before going up against Renfrew in their final warm-up clash on Saturday in the Hugh Blair Trophy.
Whiteford knows there will be no room for error heading into the new season and despite a hectic schedule to kick things off, his sights are only on the opening day.
Speaking to Barrhead Sport, he said: "It's a step up from quality compared to last season where there was a couple of games where we were probably off it and still managed to win games comfortably whereas this year you need to be at it every game.
"I think we can go and beat every team if we are on our game but if you’re not on your game then every single team can beat you.
"After the friendlies, we'll give ourselves a week of training to prepare for the first game and hopefully we are in a good position with the squad and fitness and we can hit the ground running.
"Rob Roy at home is the first game so that’s where the focus is.
"We know it’s going to be difficult, but we are looking forward to the challenge."
Whiteford has welcomed a number of trialists over the summer as he looks to add further quality to his squad but will now look to trim the numbers ahead of the new season.
He was able to secure last season's stars on new deals in the shape of Connor McCabe, Del McNab, and Dylan Fletcher for another campaign at the Brig and has recruited Mick Lennox, Ross Loughlin, and Ross Ingram, and knows fresh faces were needed.
He said: "It's good to have big names in at training, but it’s hard when games come around and you’re trying to get everyone minutes.
"We’ve got an idea now of who we are looking to keep on.
"We've got a couple of games to get the squad whittled down."
Kick-off against Arthurlie at Dunterlie Park this evening is at 7.15pm with Saturday’s game against Renfrew taking place at Brig O’Lea with a 2pm kick-off.
