THE players may have only been back at training for two weeks following their Christmas break but there were no such breaks for NPL Queensland club Western Pride off the pitch this summer

Following an impressive debut season for the club, Western Pride General Manager Pat Boyle recruited heavily in the off-season to shore up key positions in the clubhouse.

Pride have appointed a new Sponsorship Manager, as well as reconfiguring their in-house media team ahead of the club’s 2014 NPL Queensland campaign.

Remaining true to their Ipswich roots, Pride recruited both positions from amongst the local community.

"We are based in Ipswich and there are more clubs in our catchment area. We want to make sure we do right by the people in all of those areas," Boyle explained.

“We’ve added to the administrative side of the club, quite a number of positions have been filled with professional people,” Boyle continued.

“It’s about adding that polished edge to what we’re trying to achieve with the club.”

Those achievements included a mid-table finish for the club’s seniors in their first season, and a rapidly improving core of junior boys and girls across the National Premier Leagues age divisions.

Pride recorded an increase in playing numbers for the forthcoming season, and Boyle said it was a reflection of the club’s development philosophies as part of the NPL pathway.

“Our franchise has been operating for 12 months and a lot of people were a little bit hesitant, not in football itself, but whether this product was going to go beyond its first year,” Boyle explained.

“Now that we’ve proven that it has, and it’s a very good product with quite a bit of longevity about it, people are now coming on board.

“Not only are we getting numbers but it’s also quality, so we’re situated in a very good position compared to last year, that’s for sure.”

Boyle emphasised that NPL football was about more than just balls skills and fitness.

“We’ve had an increase in numbers this year, but it’s not just about a 13 per cent more players,” Boyle explained.

“It’s about having 13 per cent more kids that we can instill the right values in off and on pitch – that’s what we’re trying to achieve as a club.”

“We want to provide value to the Ipswich community, not just the football community,” he concluded.

Words: Michael Cormack (Western Pride)