Mervue Marbella bound

With news of their confirmation as a First Division club only days old, League of Ireland newcomers Mervue United today jet off to sunny Marbella for an intensive training camp as they prepare for the challenges that lie ahead.

Speaking at yesterday's press launch at the Kingsvalley Hotel, manager Johnny Glynn stressed the importance of the trip for the players preparations. "The training camp is a very important part of our preparations for the season ahead. We have a lot of work lined up in terms of training for the week and also we have arranged a friendly for Friday afternoon in Benahavis against Swiss side FC Kusnacht, who will hopefully present us with a good challenge."

FC Kusnacht, now in the fourth tier of their national league, are regular visitors to the area at this time of year due to a prolonged winter break in Switzerland. They played a friendly against Bohemians last year which they lost 3-1 so will be looking to improve their record against Irish sides.

Mervue will be taking 24 players and 5/6 staff on the trip and club secretary Declan McDonnell acknowledged the lengths to which the squad have gone to to make this trip a possibilty.

"It's a credit to both the players and the coaching staff. Two-thirds of the cost of the training camp has been raised by the players and it's something you don't hear about at League of Ireland level. They're actually paying to go training and that's a credit to them and the mentality these players have. It's also a mark of the respect they have for the club, and for both Johnny and Mark (Herrick) in particular, that they're prepared to dig in to their own pockets for this trip."