Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls and a very warm welcome back to Priestfield Stadium for our pre-season friendly fixtures with Peterborough United and our friends from Scotland, Hearts. As a form guide, pre-season performances can be notoriously misleading when it comes to the regular season but I am confident that both sides will give our boys a real test and that can only stand us in good stead for the rigours of the season ahead.

Obviously relegation was a very bitter pill for us all to swallow at the end of last season and seemed all the more unpalatable given that we had given our survival chances such a strong boost with that magnificent home win over Southampton in our penultimate fixture. Parting company with a Manager is never an easy decision to make but I think that the vast majority of our supporters present at Wycombe on the final day had reached the conclusion that the club was in need of a change of direction.

To which end, it gives me tremendous pleasure to welcome Andy Hessenthaler back to the club along with his back room team of Ian Hendon, Nicky Southall and Darren Hare. The term legend is banded about all too easily in this day and age, but, in Gillingham's proud history few players have given more or achieved as much as Hessy. He is Gillingham through and through, he understands this club and the ambitions of its staff and supporters and in the modern game that is a rare and highly prized quality.

Andy was a pivotal player in all of the greatest moments of our recent history and holds the distinction of leading the club to its' highest ever league placing. Since leaving Gillingham in 2007 he has enjoyed outstanding success at Dover Athletic, achieving back-to-back promotions in consecutive campaigns and I am convinced that he is the right man, at the right time, to lead this club back to where we belong.

Away from the playing side of things, but no less important an addition to our club, has been the arrival of Automatic Retailing, who have agreed to become our main club sponsor's for the 2010/11 season. Although Newcastle based, and staunch Geordie supporters, Automatic Retailing are a leading vending machine supplier and are making big inroads in the Kent business community. Chairman Neil Templeman and his team are real football people and I believe Automatic Retailing and Gillingham FC will make a great partnership.

Our other significant change this summer sees the launch of our popular striped home and away kit, which return by popular demand, following the supporter driven "back in black" campaign. I'm sure you'll agree that the new Vandanel designs are stunning and invoke special memories of campaigns past. The black stripes are synonymous with some success at Priestfield. They were introduced in 1995-96 as we clinched promotion from the fourth tier and returned for a two year spell in 1998 as we twice reached the League One Wembley play-off finals secured promotion to the Championship for the first time in the club's history in 2000. The new kits are due to arrive in the megastore very soon, keep an eye on the official website for further updates.

With the nucleus of last season's League One side intact, which, let's not forget, pulled off impressive home wins over Leeds, Southampton and Millwall and one or two more additions, I believe we have everything in place for a successful assault on League Two this season. During my time at the club we have achieved promotion from this division at the first attempt every time and with your support I know we can pull it off again. Enjoy the match and get behind the boys