DOUGIE Freedman is delighted his side were able to plunge straight into the deep end against Danish giants Brondby.

There were concerns within the Wanderers camp that the pre-season opener against a side who will be embarking on a Europa League campaign in just over a week’s time could be a step too far.

But after matching the Copenhagen club stride for stride over 90 minutes, Freedman feels his side have got off to the perfect start.

Ex-Whites striker Johan Elmander opened the scoring for Brondby before Jermaine Beckford missed a penalty just before the break. Half-time sub Craig Davies then showed him how it was done to level the scores immediately after the restart – sparking an entertaining second half that also saw Rob Hall handed a straight red card.

“When you choose to play a game at this level, it’s like going straight in at the deep end,” Freedman said.

“Last season we didn’t get off to a great start, so I decided to take a look at myself and see what I could do about it.

“You come to a wonderful arena like this with great support, we brought some great fans with us as well, and you’ve got to respect the opposition.

“I thought in the first half we were strong, we were difficult to break down and in the last 15 minutes of that first half I thought we were coming on to a decent game. We got the penalty, we missed it, but it was okay.

“The players who came on in the second half were more experienced and they showed it in the way they played.

“In all, we’ve played a team who are about to start in the Europa League and given them a really good game. I’m so pleased I chose to do it this way and start with a higher opposition.”