After his signing in June and a successful pre-season with Bristol Rovers, Ben Purrington is ready to start the season right.
All eyes are now on the Pirates' Carabao Cup Round One fixture against Peterborough United – the first game of the season.
Purrington moved to the Pirates early in the window and was the Rovers' third summer signing, but was quickly joined by plenty of other new additions, with Steve Evans getting most of his business done before the first pre-season match against Weston-super-Mare.
Speaking to the media before the cup clash, Purrington is excited to have the Gasheads behind him and is looking for progression in the Carabao Cup against Sky Bet League One opposition...
MOVING TO THE CLUB
“Yeah, it got done early. It took a while for it to get announced and things, but it was nice to get it done early doors. I’m settling in well, it's been over a month now, so it's nice to get started on the weekend and get the first actual game out the way and then on to the league.
“Last year, Cambridge got promoted, finish third. It was a good year, a successful year. I think, as a group, we had a really good group up there. I look here, I think we've got more than enough ability to sort of replicate that and try and get up the league, have a really good push this year. Fingers crossed, that will be the outcome.”
PROMOTION EXPERIENCE
"I have had four. So, I've been lucky enough to be a part of four promotion sides, so I’ve sort of been around successful groups. I think if we can get anywhere near that again, that would be a really positive season.
“When you are in these groups, it gives you the taste of what it is and the success and you want another one and it of you sort of chase that. So hopefully, we can get another one.
"Don't get me wrong, [at Cambridge] we started okay, I thought, as the season went on, we sort of built as a group and we got a bit more momentum and built results, consistency and stuff. So, I think it can take time sometimes and sometimes little bit of patience. But I mean if you get a good start, you're not going to turn them down. You hope to get a really good start and get a few wins.”
PETERBOROUGH PREVIEW
"We know as a group, [promotion and cup success] is what we want to achieve. Peterborough, they are a good side, they’re not going to hype themselves up too much, but they are a good side.
“They’re a very good League One side. They’ve got some really threatening players. They've got a good squad. So, it'll be a real tough game. We prepared, we’ve had a good pre-season, so hopefully we can try and progress in the cup as well as do well in the league.
“It's still a buzz because you're at home. You’ve got fans, being a Bristol Rovers player, I've played there on numerous occasions for other clubs, and it's been a great atmosphere when the fans are on the opposite side, it's not a nice place to come as such.
“Lots of positive results there though, so it will be nice to have them behind us, for a change for me."
CARABAO CUP ON A SATURDAY
“I guess at the start, teams don't always play the strongest teams, because it’s not the first game. It's different this year as it’s the first game. So, I mean, I don't know what the team is, or anything yet. So, we don't know what we're doing, but yes, it a bit different with it being the first game. I've played in a couple of nice ones, where we Fulham last year. It was a nice place to go.
“So, you want to progress and play these big teams and get some good experiences. So, hopefully we can get through and get ourselves in the draw for the next week.”
THE GAS’ TIME IN SCOTLAND
“Yeah, when you’ve got a lot of signings that are new, you don't really know each other very well, you get a nice experience. We were up there in like a sort of, you had your own room, it's like a dorm almost.
“So, it's like you're in with different people. You hang around with people you don't really know, and you get to know them very well after that week. You had your socialising after your training.
“So, it's a good experience just to be around each other for a long time. You get to know each other well. I only knew Richie Smallwood and Jack Aitichson, two really, not very much of the squad.
“Normally you start to know faces, and you got the new signings, a couple that weren’t in Scotland, but everyone gets to know each other quickly. I think we've got a real close-knit group from what I've seen so far, so hopefully that'll go well.”
