Accrington Stanley boss John Coleman is aiming to improve on the 1-0 defeat Huddersfield Town handed the Lancashire outfit last pre-season.
Tom Ince made his first appearance for Town that day and scored his first goal in the blue and white stripes to seal the victory for the Terriers.
But hosts Stanley had improved on the previous clash between the sides in 2016, when they were comfortably beaten by then- Championship outfit Town.
And Coleman is hoping his side, which achieved promotion to League One last term, can once again improve on the previous year's efforts.
He told the Lancashire Telegraph : “The season before last they wiped the floor with us but last year we gave them a good game and we were very good.
“Hopefully we can keep improving.
“We have an Accrington XI going to (North West Counties side) Shelley so players will be getting a run out so there will be a chance to get a lot of minutes under players’ belts.
“I think it’s important you have games that test you.
“Certainly the games we have lined up will do just that.”
The Stanley boss is keen on getting his players as fit as possible for their first season in League One and knows a strong pre-season is key in getting his players to the standard he wants.
He said: “I think everyone is feeling the heat, literally, and it hampers what you can do. It saps the players’ energy, so you have to be mindful that you don’t overwork them.
“But we still believe in doing a pre-season that players don’t like, but they appreciate the fact they have done it at the end of it.
“I think if you get a good pre-season under your belt then it sets you up for the season and it means you can focus on more things other than fitness throughout the season.
“We always finish the season strong so we must be doing something right and hopefully that can continue.
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“We had a bit of a run-out behind closed doors against Liverpool Under-23s which was encouraging.
“There were some good signs and I’m pleased to keep the bulk of the squad together.”
