There are ‘plenty of positives’ from Saturday’s 1-1 draw in a behind closed doors friendly against Ashville at Yockings Park according to a key figure at the club.

The West Cheshire League outfit provided stern opposition for Luke Goddard’s men who had to rely on a second-half equaliser from Danny Lokko to earn a draw.

Whitchurch Alport’s director of football, Lea Edge, said despite the result, the performance was good.

“Everything is really positive at the moment,” said Edge. “There’s no such thing as a bad friendly and it’s all about trying different shapes and giving players valuable game time.

“They were a well-organised side and they caused us problems in the first half.

“In the second-half we played some really good football and we had three pacy youngsters on the pitch for the last third and it’s difficult to defend against when you have players running at you.”

As excited as Edge may be about the first team, he is equally upbeat about Alport Ladies after announcing a new structure.

Dan Booth and Rob Morris have been brought in as coaches to support joint managers Laura Thelwell and Louise Wainwright.

Both bring with them a wealth of experience and have worked together before at TNS Ladies enjoying plenty of success.

Edge added: “The full weight of the club is behind the management team as we focus on progressing our ladies section.

“We want to encourage others to become part of this project and come to play for an extremely well-run club at one of the best facilities in the county.

“The addition of Dan and Rob completes our ladies structure and shows that we are serious about supporting Laura and Louise to get the best out of a squad which is coming together well.”

Booth, who joins as head coach, is looking forward to the new challenge.

“I’ve seen how the club has progressed over the past 12 to 18 months and felt I wanted to be a part of that,” he said.

“Hopefully, my experience will give these players a platform to grow and push on to the next level.”