Port Vale have announced a number of pre-season friendlies that will take place over the course of the summer and Michael Brown is looking forward to the preparations.

With the manager and his staff working hard now to put together a group of players, he can't wait to get the ball rolling again as his side approach the new season.

He said: "We are back in just before the end of June and going into July we have several things planned. There will be a week locally somewhere else on the grass and then maybe here for a couple of weeks.

"We will see if we can get a sunshine break. A lot of teams do and we are still working on that."

Brown knows that team bonding is "pivotal", particularly when many new faces join a team and that is what they will be looking to do over the pre-season schedule.

The Valiants will also be going through their paces to ensure fitness levels are ready for the opening day of the season.

He said: "The players are certainly going to be fit and we have done a bit of running with a few players already.

"We need to instil that fitness is for free, it's a given. That is one thing we will be looking at, but we will be focusing on the football side as well - different shapes, formations and that comes with the territory."