PLAYER-COACH Paul Broadbent has declared things are looking good for York City Knights as the countdown to the club's first-ever match ticks on.

One blow comes with the confirmation that Broadbent himself has been ruled out of the first two months, but he is otherwise "very happy" with the way things are taking shape.

The Knights kick off their competitive campaign in just 22 days' time with an Arriva Trains Cup tie at home to Hull KR on January 19, and before then face two friendlies, against Oldham on January 5, and Wakefield on January 12.

"Things are going really well and I'm happy with the work we're doing," Broadbent told the Evening Press.

"We've got a few guys to come in, but we're just about there and are putting the finishing touches together.

"It's looking pretty good. The quality of the work the players are doing in training is on the whole very good."

The mighty prop will be out of action until March following his operation in September to clear up a shoulder problem sustained while playing in Super League for Wakefield.

"I will not be fit for the Arriva Trains Cup but I should be for the league campaign," he said.

"I would have liked to get off as soon as we got going, but it's one of those things.

"The specialist has said it won't be ready till then, so it would be a bit crazy now for the sake of a few weeks to push it too far and risk setting it back to square one.

"The guys we've got are hopefully going to be able to do the job anyway, I've no worries about that. I think they can all hold their own."

Broadbent will give his players little let-up over the festive period, with training sessions continuing up until the Oldham friendly.

"I'm looking forward to seeing them on the field," he said. "We've been in training for a few weeks now and, although it's looking good, the big question is whether what we've done in training can be transferred onto the field.

"I'm pretty convinced that using the game plan in matches is not going to be a major drama but it will be good to see how the players fare.

"We will be working on the game plan constantly between now and the first game and hopefully it will soon become second nature to them."

As for the Wakefield friendly, Broadbent reckons the Wildcats will bring a quality side to Huntington Stadium, which should guarantee a bumper gate.

"I've spoken to (Wakefield football manager) Shane McNally and I believe they'll be fetching over quite a strong team," he said.

"They've got some new players and I've no doubt they will be looking to have a good run-out. It will be a good test of where we're at. The guys can get a feel of what the next stage up is and judge themselves off that."

Updated: 10:52 Saturday, December 28, 2002