EXPERIENCE tells Kevin Blackwell this season will be no easy ride for his hastily assembled squad, but the 53-year-old Bury boss believes he is perfectly placed to get the best out of them.

The Shakers manager started the close season with just nine players under contract, three of whom – lead striker Andy Bishop, captain Steven Schumacher and star winger David Worrall – have since been sold.

Blackwell has worked hard to plug the gaps, bringing in 17 new players in just under two months.

But while he warns there will be teething problems, the Bury boss believes his previous experience with Leeds has stood him in good stead.

“I had to completely re-build the Leeds team in 2005 after they were relegated from the Premier League,” he said.

“In the first game of the season at home to Derby County I think out of the 11 who started there were nine players making their debuts, while out of the 18 we had in the squad we had 15 new players.

“That season we finished 14th – we were a little bit up and down and struggled for consistency – but the following season we made it to the play-off final.

“The situation at Bury is very similar, so I have had experience of a lot of the stuff that has been thrown at me, and you know, this has turned out to be one of the best pre-seasons I have ever had.”

Blackwell says he has worked hard to ensure mistakes he made during his spell at Elland Road were not repeated at Gigg Lane, while all of the lessons learned have been used to assimilate his players in double-quick time.

“Everything has gone really well, from the training to the way it has been organised,” he said.

“I think that has come from that experience of knowing how to deal with players who have been thrown into this situation and are maybe not too sure of themselves.

“We have done that by trying to keep as many of the players as possible together by moving them into the same digs, while also encouraging them to eat and socialise together, and that has created a really good spirit.

“These are all things that we can control, but what we will find out now is how they deal with the things we can’t control.

“How do they react individually and as a group when put under pressure, when things don’t go their way on the football pitch, when they are not playing well and the crowd has a go at them?

“We will find that out as the season progresses so it will take time – it won’t all come together overnight – but we have made a good start.”

Blackwell admits the first two home games of the season, against Chesterfield in League Two on Saturday and League One Crewe in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday, will provide a yardstick for how far they have come.

And he refused to heap any further pressure on his players by making any bold early predictions.

“The progress the club has made in the past six months is quite breathtaking and I’m really looking forward now to the season starting,” he said.

“But we have made double the number of signings of the next busiest club and they will need time to bed in.

“A lot still don’t know the area and are still getting to know their team-mates, everything is new to them. Saturday will be the first time they have played in front of the Bury fans, and, for one or two, the first time they have played in front of a crowd.

“It is a very unusual situation for them to be in, one of the rarest in football, but it’s one I have been through before.”