MALPAS had a break from action at the weekend with all the other Cheshire League One sides on Cup duty. It gave the Herald chance to catch up with their chief Lea Edge who has presided over five seasons now at Wrexham Road, building a team that has already won honours and now sit amongst the favourites to gain promotion this time around. “This has been the first free week I’ve had for a number of months, and it’s allowed me to stand back and look at the position of the club,” said the popular manager. “We’ve made massive strides over the last few years having made a key decision to pull our Sunday side out of the Wem League, and put an under-21 development squad in the Cheshire League. “This gives us a solid structure to move players through the club from all age groups, with the ultimate goal of producing players for the senior teams. “We have already seen the fruits of this as a number of last season’s under-16 squad, have already made appearances for the second string after impressing in pre-season. I have the easiest job in the club in some respects as I get to pick from a large pool of players, leaving the second team with the balance.  “After last season where we saw a fourth placed finish, as well as putting the League Cup and the Powell Cup into our trophy cabinet, the pressure is on to keep the progression moving forward. “We only lost two players from last year, with Owen Ward moving on due to work commitments and top scorer Alex Hughes moving to Newtown in the Welsh Premier League it proves players can progress here and move to a higher level. That proves we’re getting it right. “We’ve started well but there’s more to come. Danny Mee has been working hard to keep my squad fit as the games come thick and fast, and that’s vital to our plans for the campaign.” Malpas have a Chester Senior Cup game at Kelsall on Saturday and Edge hopes to have a full squad to pick from.  Malpas can offer players games at all age groups. Contact Lea if you are interested in joining one of the top clubs in the area on 07884 041334.