Carrick Rangers given the chance to recharge batteries

Let the good times roll: Carrick are looking forward to life in the top-flight. Photo: Presseye

Taking time out to recharge batteries is all very well, but, when football is as much of a passion as it is for all those at Taylor’s Avenue, it takes a while for body clocks to adjust to allow for the abrupt end to the season.

After more than four months of playing what, in reality, amounted to three matches every eight days, not to mention training and other behind-the-scenes activities that make sporting life so time consuming, it must be strange to be kicking nothing more than heels.

But, although the focus is different, life goes on for the club as a whole and plans are under way for helping Carrick Rangers make an impact at the top level.

There’s absolutely no doubt they need quite a few more players, but it will be clearly acknowledged the vast majority of those who helped them to the trophy treble are to feature going forward. Given they have so many young players, the expectation is that most of them are only going to get better.

So they won’t be making wholesale changes in offloading terms, because they believe in the boys who have unquestionably earned the right to play in the Premier League.

However, there will be lots of new players required for the greater programme that faces them next season. For a start, the number of league games leaps by almost 50 per cent - from the 26 in the Championship to a whopping 38 in the Premiership.

And there are commitments in the County Antrim Shield, League Cup and Irish Cup to concern themselves with as well.

Then, most importantly, they will have to field a reserve team next season because that is a requirement of the Premier League status, so they will need a considerably larger squad than they have had previously. And, of course, that augurs well for everybody since much more game time opportunities come with that.

But that can only be good for Carrick Rangers Football Club and they would like to think that they will be in top flight football for the long haul.

So, it’s all a lot for everybody at the club to look forward to and, with so much to do, there’ll be plenty to occupy them all over the summer and I’m sure they will say nothing more than ‘bring it on!’.