PIERCE SWEENEY IS THE CLUB CAPTAIN OF EXETER CITY FC

Unfortunately, print deadlines dictate I’m penning this column ahead of Tuesday night’s game at Reading. I appreciate that from the outside looking in, our trip to La Manga, ahead of last Saturday’s game against Northampton, may have raised a few eyebrows. However, I feel sure we will reap the benefits between now and the end of the season.

Notwithstanding, the facilities were first-class and we enjoyed some really good quality training sessions, it gave the entire squad, especially the new guys, the opportunity to get to know one another that bit better. Certainly, I learnt a great deal about some of my teammates – their backgrounds, the struggles they’ve faced, and their ambitions – that I had no idea of before we went away.

I dare say a few people will say ‘so what?’ However, believe you me, when your backs are against the wall, as ours have been of late, anything you can do to heighten the sense of camaraderie and having each other’s backs can only help.

As you may recall, Arsenal’s Dennis Bergkamp had an aversion to flying which saw him travel pretty much everywhere by land and sea. Fortunately, we don’t have anyone who’s quite as nervous a flyer as the ex-Gunner, although I understand Reece Cole isn’t overly keen, so was very happy he wasn’t sitting next to me on either flight!

While the trip was anything but a jolly, we did enjoy the occasional bit of down time, including a round of golf on the Monday morning. A team........

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