Pre-season training continues for our Women's First Team, with Monday night's fitness tests held here on a warm Oakwell evening.
Under the watchful eye of General Manager, Mark Tinker, the Barnsley FC Women's squad were last night put through their paces in sweltering conditions as pre-season training ramped up ahead of the 23/24 season.
"It's been a good session," Tinker told us. "The sports scientist has been testing the players' speed, agility and quickness to monitor GPS through geo-referencing. It's exciting to see everything coming together, it's a really professional setup and these sessions will stand them in good stead."
The three-hour session began with gym work before the players made their way onto the 4G pitch and combined fitness testing with a number of drills involving the football, in and out of possession.
Our Sports Scientist, Nick Botten was really pleased with the way the squad responded in what were tough conditions on the night.
"They've been back in for a couple of weeks but tonight was the first series of fitness tests to gauge where they're all at. They had a 30-minute sprint test, where we gathered data from their acceleration through to their top speed.
"Later, they did 1200 metre runs, split into different blocks. We're testing aerobic capacity and that will help us design programmes to suit the needs of each player moving forward.
"It was a very positive session and we're putting the foundations in place that will hopefully help lead us towards a successful season."
After promotion last time out, the Women's Team will this season compete in the fifth tier of the pyramid, and Head Coach, Jessica Horsley is looking forward to a bright future now that the team is backed full-time under the Barnsley FC umbrella.
She explained, saying: "I was really impressed with them, they've done really well tonight because it was a tough session.
"It felt really professional getting all the speed gates out, the GPS vests on and I was really happy with how they all responded to it."
Lucy Turner has played a big part in Women's football in Barnsley for many years and is probably best placed - as one of the senior players - to offer an opinion on the progress made since the re-launch of the Reds' Women's Team.
"I've been here for years so to see how it's growing, it's massive. It's huge for the women's game, for Barnsley as a club and the community.
"I think the younger girls now have something to really aim for."
One of the younger players is Louisa Barraclough and the defender is full of excitement heading into the new season. As a Barnsley girl and Barnsley FC supporter, the last few weeks have been a joy to be a part of.
"I support Barnsley so all of this is really nice," Louisa told us.
"It was a dream come true to be asked to get involved in the launching of the new kits, and I'm looking forward to wearing the shirts and hopefully we can have another season of success."
We'll have videos over on iFollow Barnsley in the coming days, as we continue to focus on the new campaign ahead for our Women's First Team.
