Barnstoneworth United were drawn against the Gladesville Ravens in their opening match of the national soccer competition's NSW Preliminary Rounds.

Ward, who has been installed as coach of the Orange club for the 2021 season, is keen to show what they have in store for 2021.

READ MORE:

"Everyone is very excited about it because it's the first time the club has been in it," he said.

"It's always good to go in a new comp and try your luck against teams you've probably never played before.

"We just wanted the players to try something different."

As Barnies' name was drawn out second for the clash, it will mean a trip down to Sydney's Lower North Shore, with the match likely to take place on Sunday, March 14.

"We were definitely hoping for a home game," Ward said.

"But it's always fun on the trip down to Sydney and anything can happen when we get down there.

"It's hard to scout the team because everyone changes all the time down in Sydney, but they're an association team just like us. I assume they have a few decent players but don't know too much about them."

A win away will set them up with a clash much closer to home, with Western NSW slated to take on the winner of the Barnies-Ravens battle.

With the side for the season all but selected, Barnies travelled to fellow WPL side Parkes over the weekend where they fell 5-2.

But Ward isn't sweating on the result.

"Parkes played well and had some good players and we've got another game this Sunday in Bathurst against Panorama," he said.

"Parkes are always hard in Parkes, but I said to the boys before the game, 'how many points do we get if Parkes beat us? None. How many points do they get if they beat us? Zero.'

"We're trying different combinations but they were a bit more clinical in front of goal."

He added that youngsters like Ethan Mackay and James Hamilton will be ones to watch out for this season.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: