ILKLEY Town Women kick-off pre-season this evening and the atmosphere around the group is one of sheer excitement.

Manager Claire Armstrong has been busy preparing for another gruelling off-season, with the first of four fixtures set to take place on August 6 when the Baht’atters welcome Skipton Town to the MPM Stadium.

The preparation gets underway tonight and Armstrong has invited two guest coaches to join her and the players in their training sessions.

Josh Simpson from Complete Conditioning, who works with elite male and female footballers specialising in injury prevention and rehab, is coming to deliver a 45-minute strength and conditioning session with the group.

Furthermore, Louise Monkhouse, a former Leeds United Ladies Captain and current A-Licence coach will also be coming along and getting involved, which has delighted Armstrong.

She said: “We’re all very excited about Louise attending our first training session. She’ll be able to offer the girls an insight into her experiences as a former elite footballer, her experiences at Leeds United and her experiences of overcoming a serious knee injury.”