Sidmouth Town manager Danny Burwood is so proud of the way his club have ‘gone the extra mile’ to make everything as Coivd-19 secure as it possibly can be.

The Town boss was speaking the morning after the 1-1 draw with Exmouth Town in a Wednesday night behind-closed-doors pre-season friendly.

Town earned a fully deserved share of the spoils thanks to a second half close range effort from Tom Diamond.

The Vikings chief said: “What the committee and others who work with them have done is fabulous.

“Every possible effort has gone into making everything as Coivd-19 secure as it could be.

“The increased changing area utilising the scaffolding that has been kindly donated by a local business allows us to offer a greater area for visiting teams to get changed in.

“While we cannot use showers etc, at the level we play at, and indeed higher [Exmouth Town play a level higher in the Western League], it is important that players can prepare properly.

“I know that Kev and Andy [Exmouth Town management duo Kevin Hill and Andy Rawlings] appreciated what we had for them.

“But it’s not just that extra changing area, the club really have worked hard in getting everything ship shape.”

He continued: “Inside the club all the necessary protocols are in place and it was good for us to be able to sit after the game and discuss things with the Town management duo – and all in a safe environment.”

Speaking about the pre-season meeting with the Western League outfit, the Town boss said: “These are the sort of games I want our lads involved in. The boys can take so much out of 90 minutes against the likes of Exmouth Town and, if nothing else, they should have come off the pitch feeling confident in their own ability to play the game and at a good level.

“Look, I am not trying to over-hype the performance because let’s not forget that result mean nothing in pre-season. No, it’s all about fitness and team play and becoming a cohesive unit that is made up of players who can all offer something a little different when needed, but equally can play together as a team and we saw plenty of that from our lads in this game.”

He continued: “Kevin and Andy were complementary about our performance, and that pleases me.

“We did play well and I was very pleased with our transition from defence to attack.

“We didn’t try to simply leather the ball clear and, when you can play out from the back with confidence against the likes of Exmouth Tow, then it ought to give the players the confidence – and the belief – that they can do similar on a chilly Wednesday night at Manstone Lane in a South West Peninsula League game.”