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BRIDGWATER & Albion will start their season on Saturday, August 23, with home warm-up matches against Glamorgan Wanderers.

The Welsh Premiership club have agreed to play two games at Bath Road, first-team and development.

Albion chief Mike Tewkesbury is also negotiating for another Welsh Premiership outfit Bridgend to visit Bath Road for a first-team fixture on Saturday, August 30.

In addition, he is hoping to fix up a pre-season fixture against either Taunton or Weston, Albion's two nearest geographical rivals.

Having studied the league fixture list, Tewkesbury has concluded that his club have a difficult start.

"Our first match is away to Rugby Lions, whose finishing position in National Three North was the same as ours in the South and it will be interesting to see how the standard compares," he said.

"Then our first home game is against London Scottish, who, I have heard, have a playing budget of £ million, many times the size of ours, so they are going to be a tough test.

"Then we are away to Henley Hawks, who have just come down from National Two and were in National One. We will have to be on our mettle for all those fixtures."

Tewkesbury is very busy recruiting and hopes to announce a new signing or two in the next couple of weeks.

He had been hoping to continue the loan of threequarter Tom Bedford from Exeter Chiefs. Instead the 19-year-old, who scored three tries in 12 appearances for Albion during the second half of the season, has gone to Cornish All Blacks, newly relegated to National Two, on a year's loan.

"I tried to get him again, but, since he has had half a season with us at National Three level, Exeter wanted him to play at the next level up," said Tewkesbury.

Bedford's spell with Albion was sponsored by the club's Friends organisation, who are looking to give similar backing in the coming season. "They do a terrific job and are so enthusiastic," said Tewkesbury of the body which is independent of the club.

3:49pm Sunday 11th May 2008

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