AFTER so much upheaval during the summer at Bangor City, it was important they hit the ground running and they did that in emphatic style.

The Citizens made light work of their Huws Gray Alliance opener against Buckley Town, running riot on the newly promoted side to secure a comfortable 5-1 success to get their expected title challenge off to a flyer.

With so much quality littered within their squad and a manger that has seen and done it all in Craig Harrison, they are going to be everyone’s cup final this season and it is how they cope with this that will determine whether or not they make an instant return to the JD Welsh Premier League pending a successful FAW Domestic Licence application.

They made all the right noises during the summer and this transitioned to their first fixture at the VSM Stadium in front of an expectant fanbase that will be demanding nothing but the title this term.

The squad is full of proven match-winners in the likes of Les Davies, Marc Williams, Alex Darlington and Tom Field, who all demonstrated their immense qualities to simply overawe their opponents and give them plenty of confidence for the challenges that lie ahead.

Robbie Parry’s contribution on the ball was another notable highlight of their triumph and it would be a surprise if he did not play a huge part in the weeks and months to come, and the performances of Jacob Farleigh and Alex Boss were further evidence that Harrison has formulated a squad that has the right blend of youth and experience as they look to reach their lofty pre-season goals.

The reality for the rest of the league that if City play anywhere near this level for the entirety of the season they are going to have an extremely hard job catching them, but that being said there are going to be far bigger challenges than the one that this group faced on Saturday and there is little doubt that their character and cohesion will tested, especially on their travels at venues and pitches that some of the squad have not played at in the majority of their careers.

Nevertheless, this is a positive start and one that the ambitious Citizens can take a great deal of encouragement from, and the gauntlet has now been laid down ahead of this week’s league games at Ruthin Town and Guilsfield.

We will probably know a bit more about this squad at the close of play on Saturday evening following two tricky away fixtures, but if they can stand up to the physical challenges that await them then it is going to put them in a formidable position from which to build as the campaign progresses.