DORCHESTER Town manager Craig Laird was pleased with the run out his players got despite a 2-0 loss away to Bradford Town in their first pre-season friendly.

The Magpies conceded a goal in each half as Bradford Town’s Dan Cottle and Anthony Conradi both got on the scoresheet at Trowbridge Road, but Laird reiterated his belief that game time for his men carried greater significance than the result.

He told Echosport: “It was important that they tried to blow the cobwebs out. It’s about giving players game time.

“They tried to play the way I wanted. Some of the passes were careless, some of them were too long, some too low, but that’s the idea of pre-season to get that part of the game right.”

Cottle’s goal came after he broke through on goal, while Conradi added a second after rounding goalkeeper Chris Weale.

Magpies’ chances were limited on the night but Phil Ormrod had a goal ruled out for offside before the break, and a Tom Blair cross hit the top side of the bar in Dorchester’s search for a breakthrough.

Jason Brookes and Ross Carmichael picked up groin and hamstring knocks respectively and Laird admitted his plans were consequently disrupted.

“It can mess up the flow of what you’re trying to do and we had to make quite a few changes that we didn’t want to make,” he said.