Jack Wilshere believes Luton Town made the ideal start to pre-season after watching his side ease to a 5-0 victory over Hitchin Town, while new signing Harrison Ashby says he already feels as though he has been at the club “for about a year”.
The Hatters opened their summer schedule with a comfortable win at Top Field, where a brace from Jordan Clark, plus goals from Nahki Wells, Kasey Palmer and Christian Chiegozie gave Wilshere’s side an encouraging first outing ahead of the new League One campaign.
However, the Luton boss insisted the scoreline was secondary to what he wanted to see after the first week of training.
“A good start,” said Wilshere told LTFC+, adding: “I said this to the players before, it’s about minutes, but it’s not just about playing. It is never about just playing. It’s the first step to where to where we want to get to.
“We’ve got a really exciting pre-season ahead of us where we think that we’ve worked really hard at looking at the areas where we need to improve and week by week we want to get better and better.”
Every member of the matchday squad played 45 minutes as Wilshere looked to build fitness, but the Hatters boss was equally pleased that elements worked on during training were already beginning to show on the pitch.
“And in these games, it’s always nice to score goals and play well, but you’re probably looking more at the things you worked on in the week and are they coming out and can you see improvements knowing that the lads aren’t on 100 per cent fit yet?” he said.
“So there’ll be a little bit of sloppiness at times, but I thought actually that we were really good.
“Difficult pitch at times to do what we were trying to do, but the lads done it well. Yeah, a good 45 minutes for everyone.”
Wilshere also praised the attitude of his players after their opening week back at The Brache, although he made it clear there is no intention of easing off.
“Really happy,” he said when asked to assess the first week of pre-season.
“But – I’m talking about staff now – it’s not the time for us to rest and have a day off, we need to get ready for next week.
“We know what the next step for us is in terms of what we want to work on. We need to make sure that we’re sharp, so when the players come in Monday, we can start straight away.
“I’m happy with the week, but there’s more to come.”
One player making his first appearance in orange was loan signing Harrison Ashby, who slotted in seamlessly after joining from Newcastle United earlier this week.
The right-back admitted he has settled into the squad quicker than he expected.
“I really, really enjoyed it,” said Ashby, adding of the run-out: “Hopefully it’s trying to find what we’re capable of.”
Asked how he has adapted to life at Kenilworth Road, the 24-year-old added: “Loved every minute.
“Coming in with the group, I think after about five minutes, I’ve been here for about a year. So, yeah, everything’s been top. I’ve really enjoyed my time so far.
“I think today was a good start for everyone to get 45 minutes and hopefully get some more in soon.”
Luton continue their preparations for the new season on Saturday with a trip to Barnet followed by a training camp in Spain before facing stronger opposition later in pre-season when Dutch top flight side Go Ahead Eagles come to Kenilworth Road, as Wilshere continues building towards the League One opener at Reading next month.
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