Comment by Robbie Earle

I SEE Port Vale boss Micky Adams has broken with tradition by taking his players away from Westport Lake for their first day of pre-season training.

All right, the alternative venue wasn't Portugal or Spain, it was Hanley Forest Park ... but at least one of his players should be grateful for the switch by the end of the day.

Our training around Westport Lake used to feature someone 'accidentally' being bumped over the bank and into the depths to send the ducks scattering.

Considering the murky water there used to be at 'Wesser', I'm surprised the unfortunate victims made it to the start of the season.

Whether you spent the day pulling reeds from your new perm, or merely finished it drenched in sweat, there weren't many players who looked forward to that first day back.

Some players had let themselves go a little more than others during the close season.

In fact, we used to say there were two Alan Webbs when we reported back, because he'd put on about four stone.

There was no escaping the scales on the first day back, although Webby did his best by spending the previous day in a sauna like a boxer desperately trying to make the weight.

You can guarantee the first day of pre-season training will also be one of the hottest days of the year, so my sympathies go to the Crewe and Vale lads who started this week, and the Stoke boys, who'll be back in next Thursday.

Mind you, the fitness training is one of the few downsides to a great job, but there's no doubt pre-season is crucial.

These first couple of weeks don't give the players match fitness, but they will give them endurance which will pay dividends later on.

When you are on heavy pitches in mid-winter, all the fitness work you did back in a boiling July starts to pay off.

That's why players who miss pre-season through injury find it so hard to catch up.

When I was in that situation, I tried doing my own pre-season during the campaign, but it's just not the same when you are not part of a group.

A squad's camaraderie also builds up during pre-season which is why, as a new player, I would always prefer to be there from the start of training, rather than joining just before the new season.

I know Tony Pulis tends to leave his transfer business until later in the summer when he gets some better deals.

But I'm impressed by the team spirit he's managed to create at Stoke because that would be easier if the new players were on board in early July.

Most of the Stoke, Vale, and Crewe lads will have done their own training before actually reporting back officially.

I used to do that in the last couple of weeks before we reported back, but I don't see anything wrong in having a break and a few beers before that.

The league season is physically and mentally demanding. It does players no harm at all to switch off from that for a few weeks and then come back refreshed.

The approach to the close season had become more scientific by the time I finished my career than when I started it.

At Wimbledon, we were given our own individual plan for fitness work during the close season.

At Vale, it was more of a case of: "See you in July".

Mind you, there was plenty of incentive to keep in shape just by thinking of that first day back when Micky Pejic would be running us into the ground.

The older pros tend to bring up the rear, among comments such as: "Is this an athletics club or a football club?"

They will tell the younger lads that there are no prizes for coming first during pre-season, but every player will know just how important the next few weeks are to the campaign.