ANTON McElhone admits Morton players could be in for a shock today when they see the levels being set at pre-season.

The Ton assistant manager, who has a background in sports science and specialising in fitness and conditioning, has been planning training along with manager David Hopkin.

The squad report for duty today after their close-season, as they gear up for their first competitive fixture on July 16 when they take on Dumbarton in the Betfred Cup.

The Cappielow outfit have three pre-season friendlies before then, and McElhone, who has previously worked with Tottenham Hotspur and New England Revolution, says all the hard work put in now will be worth it come the start of the campaign.

He told the Tele: “It might be a shock, a good shock, that there will be standards, pressure on them to perform and you have to give everything and you need to make the manager happy.

“If you’re not giving your all then it’s not going to be acceptable.

“Whether it’s with good old-fashioned work, you want to improve them and develop them — but the only way you can do that is by working hard.

“It doesn’t have to be new-fangled or fancy, you just have to be smart.”

“There’s not going to be anything crazy. 

“It will just be the basics and get the best out of what everybody is doing, whether it’s games, running or in the gym.

“There’s not going to be, ‘oh wow this is going to be revolutionary’ like all the big clubs do, but they do it every day and they do it routinely and that’s what we’re trying to get to.

“These are the things that people will buy into, and hopefully they will see the benefits in time.”