Sauchie gaffer Fraser Duncan says he is happy with how his squad is shaping up ahead of the new season.

The Beechwood Park side convincingly saw off Forth Juniors in a pre-season friendly last weekend, and will play a number of other sides as they prepare to launch their bid to return to the Super League.

The manager says he is pleased with what he has seen so far and urged his players to continue working hard as they move into their Premier League campaign.

Duncan told Advertiser Sport: “I'm happy with the way things are looking and how pre-season has gone so far but there is still loads of work to be done over the next couple of weeks. We had a friendly on Saturday against Forth Juniors which we won 6-0. That was quite a good test for us and the boys did really well. The games are going to come thick and fast over the next few weeks so we have to make sure the team is structured and ready to go. We are looking forward to the start of the season and we are all preparing for the Bathgate game on August 6. That is the big one. We need to go into the Premier League and dominate, and the only way we will do that is if we work very hard.”

Duncan had already added a number of new signings and bolstered his ranks further with the addition of striker James McAteer, who arrives from Bo'ness United.

And he says he is still looking to bring in more new recruits in the coming weeks.

He said: “We have brought in several new players, including a goalkeeper, and I am still looking to add one or two more to that as well. That will take us up to the 21 mark. After that we will see how the season goes. It will be good if I can get another couple of guys in over the next couple of weeks.

“We have signed James McAteer from Bo'ness. We just got that deal done in the last 24 hours. James was the top goalscorer in this league two years ago with Falkirk Juniors and we are hoping he can do that again with us. He's going to be a real attacking asset for us.”

The manager insists his players can bounce back from their relegation nightmare, but warned that they must avoid a repeat of the poor disciplinary record which cost them so dearly last season.

Duncan added: “There is massive determination there. We have sat down and had a chat, and we are incredibly determined this year to make sure that we are not missing out through suspension because that really killed us last year. We have been working hard on that and we need to take that forward, because we need a full squad to choose from week in, week out. You can compensate for injuries, but I'm not willing to compensate for suspensions so we need to make sure we aren't picking any up.”