Barry Fuller said that Neal Ardley's summer recruits have fitted in smoothly and he believes that AFC Wimbledon are well equipped to be competitive in League One.
Our captain said: "The new boys have settled in really well. You can tell by their performances on the pitch and they are expressing themselves already. There are a few of them who are characters and that makes it different to how we were last season. The manager has been big on team spirit.
"It (pre-season) has gone really well. We've changed how we play a lot, so it's a lot of work on the training ground. We've had to take it into games. From the fans' point of view, it looks like it could be nail-biting at times. Hopefully, it will work for us this weekend (against Scunthorpe United) and beyond. We have shown at times during pre-season that we can play really good football and cause teams a lot of problems. We have to work hard and knuckle down for the weekend, but the manager will be making sure too that we don't pick up any knocks. We will go there confident and hopefully we will get the right result."
With a shoulder injury having ruled Barry out of competitive action since February, the Dons captain has relished getting back into the groove in pre-season – and even notching a rare goal on Saturday.
"When you come back from five-and-a-half months out, you always have that worry that there might be a setback," added Barry. "I've not had that and I am ready to go. If I am selected to play at the weekend, I will be over the moon. If not, then I will be around the boys anyway to get them up for it.
"It's always nice to get on the score-sheet. Everyone know that's not really me and I think that will my one for the next three or four years! The manager kept on saying for me to get up for corners, George managed to find me at the near post, and I've scuffed it in! The main thing though was that we played against a good side (Ebbsfleet United) and it was very competitive. I think the manager got everything he would have wanted from us and the game."