While anyone involved in summer international action will not be returning to Rockliffe Park for a number of weeks, an initial group of senior Boro players will report back today for a series of fitness and medical tests.
Their presence coincides with Championship fixture release day, with the schedule for the 2025-26 season due to be released at midday.
The return of a first batch of senior players will give Edwards an early chance to get to know some of the people he will be working with next season, although the Boro boss has already crossed paths with a handful of players who returned early to carry out their own fitness programmes.
Gone are the days when the start of pre-season would see players arriving in a variety of shapes and sizes following their holiday excursions, with a higher degree of professionalism resulting in a much-changed summer.
“The lads are back in on Thursday for some testing for a few days,” said Edwards, whose appointment was officially confirmed on Tuesday. “That’ll be great, although to be fair, a few of them have been coming back in already.
“Some of them have been coming in to do extra bits, as they do now. Pre-season has changed. Gone are the days where you’d be coming back with a bin bag on needing to sweat out everything you’ve been doing over the summer. It doesn’t quite work that way anymore. They’re all in before they need to be, to be fair.”
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Training work will begin next week, with Boro’s pre-season programme currently due to begin with a trip to Bradford City on July 23, although there is a chance an earlier game could be slotted in now Edwards’ appointment has been confirmed.
Boro will also face Hartlepool United and Real Betis as part of a summer schedule that has the July 26 trip to Ibrox to face Rangers as its highlight.
Around 8,000 travelling fans are expected to head across the border to watch Boro in action in Glasgow, a figure that Edwards readily admits he can hardly believe.
The forthcoming pre-season games will be important markers as Edwards attempts to get across his preferred playing style, with the former Watford and Luton Town boss also keen to use Boro’s summer games as an opportunity to experiment before the real business begins on the weekend of August 9.
“To have that (8,000 fans) at a pre-season game is incredible.” said Edwards. “It’s mind-blowing really. It’s a big game, and to take that many up there is pretty special isn’t it? It’s one to look forward to. The Harry Watling derby (Boro’s new first-team coach spent almost year working on the coaching staff at Rangers)!
“It’ll be good, but at the same time, it’s pre-season, and pre-season gives us a chance to build relationships with players and get across how we see this going. It gives us a chance to try some things as well.
“We definitely hope we’re seeing certain things fairly quickly. We want to see a really aggressive team, a front-footed team, a team that’s taking risks and trying to play in the right areas. Hopefully, we see some things like that, but it won’t be perfect through pre-season.
“There’s going to be changes in the games, we obviously want to give a lot of players an opportunity through this period. And physically, you have to make those changes. Pre-season gives us a chance to look at a lot of things, and we’ll be trying to build on those bonds we’re putting in place.”
