'Time to deliver' - Linnets boss

Relegation last season has arguably made Lynn a bigger fish in a smaller pond, and that can mean added pressure, warranted or not.

But Lynn boss Tommy Widdrington is clearly not one for taking notice of outside influences.

“Pressure is what you make it,” he said. “We will be judged by what we feel we can achieve, not by what you guys or anybody outside the football operation thinks should happen.

“I have said that in my speech to the lads the other weekend. At the end of the day, the football team is the football club and the football club needs support and that is the second most important thing to me.

“We will do our job as best we can and I am sure the players will give everything they have got for the badge before they put their name on the back of the shirt, and that is all I want. If we do that and give a good account of ourselves from minute one of the first game to the last minute of the last game, I won’t be asking any more of them.”

The bookies fancy AFC Fylde and Kidderminster above Lynn to make an immediate return, but they are another influence Widdrington has written off.

“Like I said, we won’t judge what we can do by the views or opinions of people outside of the dressing room, all we will do is work away and you will never hear anybody tweeting and whatever else social media there is around these days, I don’t know,” he said. “But we won’t be crowing when we win, we won’t be crying when we lose because that will happen undoubtedly between now and the end of the season. But what we have got to do is to make sure that we are in the best position we can be this time come the end of April.”

Lynn head north with pretty much a full squad – Kyle Callan-McFadden has started the long road back to recovery from back surgery – with the manager happy with his summer’s work.

“Yes, because I think we have brought in different types,” he said. “In Jordan Ponticelli we have got another willing workaholic - basically, he runs, he stretches the game, whereas Ben Stephens is more akin to the Josh Barrett type of game in terms of he is a technician and a sniffer of goals.

Lynn's Cameron Hargreaves - a bundle of energy... and skill (Image: ©Focus Images Limited www.focus-images.co.uk +44 7813 022858)

“Cameron Hargreaves’ energy is going to be way above the level and we need to use that and his passing is way above and we need to use that.

“Josh Coulson has never played at this level.

“We have got to keep the lads at it mentally as much as physically because we don’t want to be treated any differently, we want to be feared, if that is the right word, in the right way or dismissed by anybody who wants to dismiss us and they can do that as much as they want.

“We know what we are, we know what we can do, or we feel we know what we can do, and it all starts at Bradford.”

Lynn have had a good pre-season, which ended with a 5-0 home win over Lowestoft Town a week ago – although Widdrington is glad to see the back of the summer ritual.

“ I don’t like pre-season myself because I get a little bit irate at times when standards drop on the pitch and they are not really dropping it is just me being me, so when there is something to play for I much prefer those games,” he said. “Like I have said, the fact that we have moved our training operation just down the road to Ely has been a huge help for us and that is why we look like we look in my opinion. Everything we need we have got and I thank the chairman for backing that and we have now got to deliver, it is as simple as that.”

FIXTURES

August

Sat 6: Bradford Park Avenue (a)

Sat 13: Blyth Spartans (h)

Tue 16: Brackley Town (h)

Sat 20: AFC Telford (a)

Sat 27: Leamington (h)

Mon 29: Peterborough Sports (a)

September

Sat 3: Chester (a)

Sat 10: Buxton (h)

Tue 13: Alfreton Town (h)

Sat 17: FA CUP

Sat 24: Curzon Ashton (a)

Tue 27: Kettering Town (a)

October

Sat 1: FA CUP

Sat 8: Chorley (h)

Sat 15: Southport (a)

Sat 22: Darlington (h)

Tue 25: Banbury United (h)
Sat 29: Gloucester City (a)

November

Sat 5: AFC Fylde (h)

Tue 8: Scarborough Athletic (a)

Sat 12: Kidderminster Harriers (h)

Sat 19: FA TROPHY

Sat 26: Spennymoor Town (a)

December

Sat 3: Hereford (h)

Tue 6: Farsley Celtic (a)

Sat 10: Bradford Park Avenue (h)

Tue 13: Brackley Town (a)

Sat 17: FA TROPHY

Mon 26: Boston United (a)

January

Sun 1: Boston United (h)

Sat 7: Blyth Spartans (a)

Sat 14: Peterborough Sports (h)

Sat 21: AFC Telford (h)

Sat 28: Leamington (a)

February

Sat 4: Buxton (a)

Sat 11: Chester (h)

Sat 18: Gloucester City (h)

Tue 21: Banbury United (a)

Sat 25: AFC Fylde (a)

March

Sat 4: Scarborough Athletic (h)

Tue 7: Farsley Celtic (h)

Sat 11: Kidderminster Harriers (a)

Sat 18: Spennymoor Town (h)

Sat 25: Hereford (a)

April

Sat 1: Chorley (a)

Fri 7: Kettering Town (h)

Mon 10: Alfreton Town (a)

Sat 15: Southport (h)

Sat 22: Darlington (a)

Sat 29: Curzon Ashton (h)