Speaking after the conclusion of his sides pre-season campaign, the gaffer expressed how he felt the “signs are quite good” for the team going into the new season.
The final pre-season clash again brought positives for Askey, despite seeing his side lose the game, as their ability to fight back and respond well were displayed.
The second-half performance saw Vale fight back into the game and take control, with the manger’s changes to formation and personnel changing the game, with players such Manny Oleleke able to get into the game.
The manager noted how fatigue from the hectic schedule of late had impacted on the performance against Bury, with the players having played regular games, travelling to Scotland for a training camp, travelling back and returning to work the next day.
With attention turning to away from pre-season, Askey expressed how important it is to not get carried away, as Colchester and the league is the main focus for the team.
He said: “We didn’t start well and the first-half was a poor performance from us, we just weren’t at it.
“Second-half we changed it, we were going to change it anyway, and we looked better, the introduction of Tom [Pope] and Mark Cullen helped to change it for us.
“With a little bit of rest now, coming into the Colchester game everyone will be at it and fully fit.
“As I’ve said all along, we won’t worry too much about pre-season, what we worry about is the league, where we’ll know after the first 10 games where we are as a club.”
The gaffer felt pleased with his squad as the season is set to get underway, with the number of options available to him and the mentality of the side particularly strong.
The new signings have also been something that has made Askey happy going forward, with players such as James Gibbons and Mark Cullen continuing to impress the gaffer, looking sharp and strong on the field and bringing a winning mentality and confidence to the side.
The gaffer is pleased to have also now added Rhys Browne to the squad, a player who offers something new to the side, as a pacey direct winger who is capable of finding the back of the net.
This strong selection of players for the gaffer to choose from has given Askey a confident feeling, as using the width of the pitch and having players that will take on defenders is key, making the boss excited about the season ahead of him.
He said: “Some of the signs are decent, David Amoo’s done well, Cullen’s done well and so on, so the signs are quite good.
“With players like David Amoo, Rhys Browne, David Worrall and Monty [Cristian Montano], we’ve got players here who can change games and we perhaps haven’t had that before.
“It gives us options and that’s what you want as a manager, you want people playing for their places.
“Coming in, we knew the supporters hadn’t been happy for the last two or three years and we can hope we can play decent football, exciting football, where we are scoring goals.”