By Andy Warren
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Town win Innsbruck Cup
Kieran McKenna says he and his side got exactly what they wanted from this afternoon’s Innsbruck Cup.
Town won the competition in the Austrian city, courtesy of a 1-0 victory over German giants RB Leipzing and Werder Bremen, to finish pre-season on a high.
While lifting a trophy at the end of a busy summer schedule was a bonus, the Town boss was most-pleased with the way his team stood up to the challenge of high calibre opposition.
“It’s about preparation for the season and we had two games which were exactly what we wanted with tactical and physical challenges,” Kieran told TownTV, during live coverage of the competition.
“They stretched us off the ball when we were out of possession and that’s exactly what we wanted.
“We want to be a big club so we’re obviously not going to be booking the open top bus parade for a pre-season competition but it’s nice to win and a nice moment for the lads and fans who were here.
“The players will have learnt a lot. We organised games like this for the end of pre-season because we knew we would be stretched out of possession and in our organisation this year.
“We have shown before that if we’re all-in in terms of commitment and if we are organsised, run hard and are brave, then we can be a really difficult team to play against.
“This is a confidence boost for the players and a reminder of that, in games like this against high level opposition, that if we are brave with the ball and run hard then we will be a difficult team to play against.”
Victory in Innsbruck completes a busy pre-season, heading into the Championship opener at Sunderland a week on Sunday.
“We got another 60 minutes into pretty much all of the players at the end of a busy fixture schedule, which means the players have had a lot of minutes,” Kieran said.
“That should mean anyone who is required against Sunderland should be ready, so that’s a bonus.
“It’s about preparing the whole squad, rather than thinking too much about Sunderland just yet.”
Town TV subscribers can watch a replay of the full broadcast now.