CAMELFORD boss Bobby Hopkinson says his side are ‘ready’ ahead of the 2026/27 South West Peninsula League Premier West campaign.

The well-travelled midfielder guided the Camels to fifth in the table and just a second Cornwall Senior Cup final in his first season in charge after replacing the long-serving Reg Hambly last summer. Now, he’s hungry to keep pushing on.

Although influential frontman Ryan Downing has joined Southern League Division One South outfit Bideford, he remains signed on when commitments allow, while the only other departure is that of attacker Cam Bidgood to St Austell.

On the signings front, striker Kyle Flew has rejoined the club from Wadebridge Town, while targetman Matt Lloyd has also made the same move and will also act as Hopkinson’s right-hand man following Dan Balsdon’s decision to step away due to family commitments.

Pre-season results have been impressive, including wins over Western League outfits St Blazey and Torpoint Athletic, and although Hopkinson knows they need to be ‘at it every week’ if they are to be in the title race, he feels they are on the right track.

He said: “Pre-season has gone well and we’ve managed to get some positive results against side who have aspirations to do well in the league above. We’ve faced some challenges with injuries and unavailability at times, but generally it’s gone really well and we feel ready.”

On his targets, Hopkinson continued: “With the pre-season we’ve had should be challenging for the top three and the league looks a lot more open. Last year Liskeard ran away with it in the end, and with Elburton switching to the east, it could be anybody’s.

“St Austell have put together a good squad but are rebuilding, Callington will be good and so will Penzance who won the Senior Cup last year and finished fourth.

“But I don’t think anybody will run away with it which means if you lose a game it’s not the end of the world. We’d also like to do a bit better in the Vase and try and have another run in the Senior Cup.”

Hopkinson hopes slightly more experience and better availability will be key.

He continued: “We had a very young squad last year, but this year our youngsters are another year older and it’s about being consistent as a collective not only on the pitch, but also being available every week so that we have the best chance of performing week in, week out.

“In previous years we’ve had some weeks where people have missed a few games for various reasons, and as a manager you always want to have people available and options to come on off the bench.

“But that said, we’ve still picked up results in pre-season with players missing, so you’ve also got to look past the excuses and make sure you perform on the day.”

Hopkinson also had a word for club legend Wiktor Maciejewski, who was recently recognised by the Cornwall FA with the Volunteer of the Year award.

He added: “I’d like to give a big shout out to Wiktor for all of his hard work behind the scenes. He’s the sort of volunteer who does so much fantastic work that people don’t see.”

Camelford start their campaign at home to promoted St Mawgan on Tuesday night (August 11, 7.30pm).