Picking up from where we left off in the first half of this two-part interview, manager Malky Mackay reviews the month of August as a whole…

SO with the pre-season work in the bank - involving all the good habits and routines Malky spoke about last time - it was a case of getting on with the job on the green stuff.

"I think with the amount of work done by the staff in pre-season, players get a real sense that there is genuinely a duty of care towards them here at Watford," explained the manager, talking exclusively to watfordfc.com.

"That then gets reciprocated through the work and dedication the players show - and generates a sense of unity which I see spilling onto the pitch where we're concerned.

"You see players helping each other out with some of the finer detail. It's a culture we've fostered but it's the players that drive it themselves."

And from that rip-roaring start at Carrow Road in early August to the home defeats against Notts County and Leeds United in the space of a week, it's been a mixed bag of results.

"As a manager, you need to reflect on any period of time with balance and give due context to certain events," said the 38-year-old Scot.

"You can put any spin on it you want, can't you? But a win, two draws and a loss in the league is how we've started - on the back of some excellent pre-season work.

"The young group that's here and has been brought together with a couple of additions, I'm actually delighted with the way they've opened themselves up to the ideas we as a coaching staff have for them.

Some light-hearted fun during pre-season with Malky and the boys. How about kitting yourself in either the navy or royal blue trainingwear. Check it out here at The Hornets Shop!

"And not only that, but they way they've come with it and stuck with it, and are really believing that our work will make us better players."

The evidence, Malky says, is there for the lads to draw from in the evidence of the first few matches. Competitive in every game is the manager's mantra - and there's little denying that's been the case.

"The key is the players' belief. It's okay me sitting here talking about it, thinking we've done all our training and things must be fine.

"But I can look back and say we've been there or thereabouts in all four games. We look back over stuff, of course, with the DVDs around and what have you, but the clearest evidence possible comes from a player's own performances.

"That's what we've seen; lads being able to look back at their own work and take real belief from the progress being made."

Doing all the extra bits is just as vital, though. The things that set the Championship apart as a challenge all of its own.

The management trio (Dyche, Mackay, Kerslake) discuss ideas.

"It's tough this division, make no mistake," smiled Malky. "I've played in it most of my career and it's got no easier over the years.

"The young players here have a choice. They can either have lots of experiences and not learn from them or use the experiences they do have to become wiser and better players.

"We're facilitating that development all the time, given them the chance to make the right decisions.

"Ultimately it's up to them, but the unity I spoke about gives us a great chance of succeeding together."

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