PHIL Wilson was set for some tough thinking after the friendly with Altrincham last night (Tuesday) as he looks to form a squad to challenge in Conference North.

Lancaster City chief Wilson needs to trim his squad and faces some hard decisions with a whole host of players cutting the mustard during pre-season.

And with the big kick-off just 17 days away, Wilson knows he needs to pick the right men.

"We have had some excellent players in during pre-season and ideally I would like to keep all of them," Wilson tells the Citizen.

"I cannot afford to do that but need to have a squad capable of competing and need to sort things out quickly."

Wilson's decision-making process wasn't exactly helped by the display of all his squad during last week's big three friendly matches.

A full-strength Preston North End side was held to a 0-0 draw on Tuesday and Blackpool were beaten 1-0 on Saturday.

The only negative came on Wednesday night when Manchester United's stars of the future proved they are going to dominate in years to come by beating City 5-0.

"United were special. They were a class above and I'm glad we don't have to play the likes of them each week," says Wilson.

"But I was really pleased with my players against Preston and Blackpool.

"The first half against North End was especially pleasing. They fielded a very strong side with plenty of Football League experience and to finish that game with a 0-0 draw was a real credit to the players.

"We did very well - and then it was nice to get the win against Blackpool, who again offered a tough test.

"I know it is a clich - but pre-season is all about getting the fitness levels up and I thought the lads looked sharp.

"And that is pleasing because in all three matches we were up against players who train and play football every day of the week. People often forget that.

"We train just twice a week."