New Armadale coach Lee Bamber is tackling with gusto the task of guiding the Premier League’s perennial struggler into a new era of consolidation. The eastern corridor club have finished outside the bottom three just once during their seven years in the top flight but Bamber and his assistant Kevin Brophy have assembled a squad which will serve the Reds well this coming season. “We’ve only been training for three weeks but the signs are encouraging on what we’ve seen so far,” commented Bamber. “The squad is coming together slowly with a good mix of youth, experience and a couple of overseas players, so Kevin and I have been happy with start we’ve had.”

Armadale had more than their fair share of problems last year, both on and off the field of play, but that didn’t deter Bamber when he was offer the clubs’ top job. “When we were offered the job we had no hesitation as we were both keen to get back involved in the Premier League,” said Bamber, who coached Inglewood United in 2008 and 2009 with Brophy by his side. “The enthusiasm and the commitment of the committee, and volunteers have been refreshing, and there is a huge potential at Armadale and after discussions with the new committee it was obvious that they had a similar vision to us on how the club should go forward.”

Bamber, 43, has been pleased with what he’s seen of his squad, which includes a number of new arrivals. “Considering we’ve only had six training sessions the boy seemed to be bonding quite well,” said Bamber, whose coaching background includes spells in the Manchester United and Preston North End academies. “The likes of Cyril Sharrock and Matt Bennion have been fantastic in making the new lads feel comfortable in their new environment. On the playing side it will take some time before we start playing the way we would like to as the focus in training has been getting a base fitness level.”

The season officially opens for Armadale on Sunday with a Night Series outing against eastern corridor rivals Gosnells City, a club Bamber knows well. “I’m sure Tony (Maguire) will have his lads fired up, just like he used to when I played under him in the Masters side,” said Bamber. “The Night Series has always been viewed as part of the pre-season program we’ve put in place, but saying that it’s a competitive game and one that we’ll be trying to win. We’re hoping for a big crowd and that we put on a good performance that will encourage more people to come down to Alfred Skeet for future games.”