Few Buddies, well few who know anything about football at least, would take issue with the assertion that WoSFL newcomers Glenvale are unlikely to set the heather on fire during the coming season.

The infrastructure of the long established Paisley Amateurs outfit, over 50 years in existence, has seen them gain acceptance into Scottish Football’s pyramid system and they will be playing in Division 4 along with fellow newbies such as St Peters, Harmony Row, Finnart and B.S.C. Glasgow.

But the transition in terms of a playing sense has been nowhere near as smooth with defeats suffered against Neilston (4-0) and Yoker Athletic (5-0) along with the twin postponements of planned matches against Renfrew and Glenvale’s own Under 20’s side has left team boss Johnny Kelly and his players desperate to lay down a marker going into their third pre-season friendly contest away to Maryhill.

The Vale gaffer, previously at the helm of St Anthonys, admitted: ”Yes we’ve taken a couple of sore ones however three of Neilston’s goals were from penalty kicks while the Yoker game was tied at 0-0 until tiredness saw us collapse over the closing twenty minutes.

“But don’t for one minute think my words are part of a grand hard luck story because truth is our guys have found coming up against established Junior players to be something of a steep learning curve.

“Teams are more competitive and their players are fitter and stronger yet the most important lesson needing to be taken on board is that Glenvale are no longer a Boys Club but are part of something so much bigger now.”

The odds on Glenvale bucking the trend to post a first victory as a WoSFL club through at Lochburn Park appear slim against a more acclimatized home team preparing to play their seventh pre-season match, three wins and three draws up to now, their latest a high scoring 5-4 reverse away to  Vale of Leven which saw Ged Dobbs (2) Craig Patterson and Jay McInally weigh in with the Hill counters.

Kelly added: “It seems every time I read about Maryhill that the lad McInally is on the scoresheet so he’ll need to be closely marked but so too will big  Patterson, one of my former  strikers at  St Anthonys’who famously scored a hat trick of headers in a cup tie against Hurlford United.

“Maryhill’s results clearly show they are very attack minded however they are prone to conceding a few so the opportunity might be there for us to score our first goals at this level.”

In other head-to-heads, Vale of Leven await the visit of Johnstone Burgh while Largs Thistle hope to follow-up Saturday’s 4-2 triumph over Glenafton with another winning performance when Port Glasgow make the short hop down the coast to Barrfields.

Premier Division big guns Irvine Meadow and Hurlford United face –off at Meadow Park while Pollok take part in their first pre-season game away from Newlandsfield when taking on free scoring Yoker Athletic at Holm Park.

Whe Ho co-managers Peter McKenna and Tommy Montgomery will be delighted with their side posting 15 goals in 3 outings up to now and will welcome the infinitely more difficult tests posed by Pollok and Saturday’s next up opponents Kilbirnie Ladeside.

Lok gaffer Murdie McKinnon, mulling over whether striker Stuart McCann has fully recovered from an ankle injury is set to field potential signing Matty Grant of Bellshill Athletic but it’s unclear whether last weekend’s trialist right back against Arthurlie, Ewan McLevy, will be given another outing.

The Ayrshire based 20-year-old, previously on the books of Brechin City and Kilmarnock, turned in a solid display but McKinnon may think he has more than sufficient cover in the key defensive position with Grant Evans, David Barron, and Evan Horne all able to play there.

PLAYING TONIGHT (Various Kck Off Times apply): Maryhill v Glenvale, Stirling University v Kilsyth Rangers, Vale of Leven v Johnstone Burgh, Largs Thistle v Port Glasgow,Rutherglen Glencairn v Lesmahagow, Harthill Royal v Forth Wanderers,Yoker Athletic v Pollok,  Irvine Meadow v Hurlford Utd, Ashfield v East Kilbride Thistle.