SWANSEA CITY'S pre-season tour to Holland got off to a stutterring start last night when the Third Division side were forced to settle for a draw against Dutch non-league champions FC Kranenburg.

In a match characterised by aggressive tackling and dubious refereeing decisions, Nick Cusack's revamped side went two-nil up - Jason Smith and trialist Jamie Wood getting on the scoresheet - only to have it ripped from their grasp.

That John Williams was denied a 58th-minute penalty when he was hauled down on the fringe of the six-yard box changed the course of the game.

Instead of taking a possible 3-0 lead, Swansea were pegged back to 2-1 when their Dutch hosts immediately scored and then later claimed a penalty themselves.

Swansea now face Belgian Third Division side Kortrijk in the second leg of their three-game tour tomorrow and player-coach Cusack is looking for an improvement on last night's solid, if not spectacular, opener.

"There were a couple of things that disappointed me," said Cusack.

"Firstly, we should have been awarded a penalty when John Williams went down.

"Secondly, we should have been more resolute at the back - especially in the second half. It was disappointing to be two-nil up, yet come away with a draw."

One individual who particularly impressed Cusack was former Manchester United trainee Wood. The striker excelled with a muscular, aggressive performance and Cusack said he could become Swansea's ninth summer signing.

Wood's strike partner for the night was also impressive. Williams is a different man after losing weight and getting fitter over the summer.

David Smith and Paul Reid have surely cemented places in Cusack's preferred starting line-up after more convincing performances.

But the jury is still out on Matt Murphy who flitted in and out of the game.

Last night Cusack played a 3-5-2 formation, with Gareth Phillips and David Smith operating as wingbacks. Kristian O'Leary - playing alongside Jason Smith and Neil Sharp in defence - had his first run-out since an ankle operation in May.

Barely two minutes had elasped before the defenders were forced to form a wall on the edge of the 18-yard box. Setting the tone for a first half full of confrontation and somewhat lacking in the sportsmanship normally associated with friendlies, referee Angelo van Loenen penalised Roger Freestone for holding onto the ball too long and awarded Kranenburg a free-kick.

The threat was snuffed out but seven minutes later the Dutch side posed another one. This time midfielder Patrick Hollenberg slid in a pass from the right and Danny Kettenis beat Freestone to it but Jason Smith intercepted and cleared.

The big defender was just as alert at the other end to put Swansea ahead after 14 minutes. Andrew Mumford swung in a free-kick from the left, Neil Sharp's connceting header was blocked by Kranenburg goalkeeper Ricardo Darson and Smith fired in the rebound.

With heavy tackles flying in and the Dutch resorting to play acting a la Brazil, the referee was struggling to keep a lid on fraying tempers. The combative Reid was getting fouled out of the game and the first half ended with Cusack remonstrating with the officials.

The second half was similarly hottempered. But Wood lost none of his cool when he connected with Williams's square ball to put the Swans 2-0 up after 50 minutes.

The game's turning point followed eight minutes later when Dennis Pronk chopped down Williams from behind in the 18-yard area but the referee waved play on.

With Swansea still appealing, Kranenburg raced to the other end and Peter Schrumph found the bottom left-hand corner with a low drive.

Schrumph ensured the part-timers a draw on 68 minutes when he converted a penalty awarded when he collapsed under a Terry Evans challenge.

But for a marvellous late save from Freestone, Kranenburg would have snatched victory.

NICK CUSACK last night insisted the first-team door was open to all of his Swansea City players if they "excel and impress" here over the next five days.

The player-coach will continue formulating ideas for next season when Swansea face Dutch non-league champions Kranenburg tonight (6.30pm, BST) in the first of their three-game tour of Holland.

The influx of new players at the Vetch this summer - eight and counting - has led many to assume there will be some familiar faces scrapping for a place on the substitutes' bench next season.

But Cusack, who will intensify competition further if, as expected, he brings in a striker and a defender, last night stressed he was maintaining an open mind about all 22 members of his revamped squad.

And he urged supporters not too read too much into his team selection against Kranenburg tonight. "People should not think it will be my first-choice 11 for the season," said Cusack.

"Of course, I am developing an idea in my mind of what the starting lineup will be against Rushden & Diamonds in the first game on August 10.

"But that does not mean I am closing the door on anyone. Far from it. These three games in Holland provide everyone - and I mean everyone - with a chance to excel and impress myself and Alan (Curtis).

"Yes, I have made eight new signings - I made it quite clear that the squad needed strengthening in certain areas. But I want to get the message across that they have not come to Swansea to walk straight into the starting line-up. They will have to compete for places like all the others."

Having settled in at their base in The Hague yesterday, Swansea will tonight play their first proper match since the visit of Torquay United brought the curtain down on the 2001-02 season in April.

Belgian outfit FC Kortrijk then form Swansea's second opponents at the home of Texas FC on Sunday (1.30pm BST), with a clash against Dutch First Division side FC Den Haag on Tuesday (6pm BST).

"I would expect to field my strongest side against Den Haag, but I won't be held to that," said Cusack.

"I want to first look at a few players who didn't get a chance in the friend-lies against Peterborough or Leicester. It is up to players to impress against Kranenburg and Kortrijk."

Defender Kristian O'Leary, who has been sidelined since an operation on his ankle in May, will have a late fitness test and will return to action on Sunday if not tonight.

Two players expected to be involved against Kranenburg are defender David Theobald - released by Brentford at the end of last season - and former Manchester United and Hull City striker Jamie Wood.

"I would like to sign another central defender and another striker, and I have been impressed with what I have seen of David and Jamie," said Cusack.

"They are in Holland with us to allow us to take a closer look at them.

"We will make a decision on them when we return. There is a possibility that we might offer a deal to one of them, or maybe both."

Swans squad: Freestone, Jenkins, David Smith, O'Leary, Jason Smith, Mumford, Murphy, Thomas, Watkin, Reid, Marsh, Jackson, Keaveny, Moss, Evans, Phillips, Williams, Howard, Sharp, Lacey, Cusack, De-Vulgt, Theobald, Wood.

Alan Curtis has told Swansea City's players the battle for a first-team spot on August 10 begins when they take on Dutch outfit Kranenburg tomorrow.

As the 32-man party jetted out to Holland today, Swansea's assistant manager revealed that the sixday pre-season tour marks the start of the race to win a starting berth when the Division Three campaign kicks off.

"The main thing about this trip is that it gives us a chance to take a closer look at certain individuals ahead of the new league season, " said Curtis, whose side take on the non-league champions in the coastal region of Kijkduin tomorrow night.

"And we are keen to look at combinations of players to see how they react to each other and who works well together.

"For example, on this tour we have six strikers in the squad and are only likely to have two on the pitch when we play Rushden & Diamonds on the opening day, so we have got to decide which is our best pairing.

"We need to see certain players for 90 minutes to give them a chance to show what they can do, " Curtis added.

"The new boys have all shown they've got something to offer. Now we want to continue the progress." Including player-boss Nick Cusack and trialists Dave Theobald and Jamie Wood, Swansea left for The Hague with a full complement of 24 fit players - skipper Kris O'Leary having shaken off his ankle problem.

Also in the party were physio Richie Evans, communications manager Peter Owen and directors Leigh Dineen, Huw Jenkins, Brian Katzen and David Morgan.

"Everybody's really looking forward to it, " said Curtis.

"The great thing about going away like this is that all the players get the chance to get to know each other socially as well as on the field.

"Even so, the emphasis will be on hard work.

That's what the players are paid for, and three games in six days is a busy schedule.

"Plus we will be training every day, including the days with evening games, so it's not going to be easy." The Swansea squad were due to reach their Dutch base early this evening, with a first training session at FC Den Haag's Zuiderpark home planned for tomorrow morning.

Off the football field, tomorrow sees the annual Swansea City Golf Day at Clyne Golf Club.

The event is being run by the executive fund-raising committee and has attracted the biggest field in its history. Some 47 teams are taking part.

The Swans have confirmed that all tickets for the pre-season friendlies with Crystal Palace and Steaua Bucharest at the Vetch Field will be £5.

The Swans head off to Holland tomorrow but when they return next week, they will face the two friendlies at The Vetch in the space of seven days.

Trevor Francis's Eagles outfit take on The Swans on Friday, July 26 with a 7pm kick-off, while Romanian outfit Steaua play Nick Cusack's side on Thursday, August 1, with a 7.45pm starting time.

The club are keen to attract a large crowd to both games and, as a result, have set the admission charge at just £5 per person.

Swansea City embark on a sixday tour to Holland today with player-coach Nick Cusack predicting it will reinforce morale within his new-look squad.

The Third Division club travel to Amsterdam and then on to The Hague where they will be based for the next week and play three games against Dutch and Belgian opposition.

Having chopped and changed his squad since the curtain came down on last season, Cusack believes the excursion will complete the integration of his eight new signings, who will be playing together for the first time in front of Swans fans.

"To be fair, team spirit is already good as the new lads have mixed in well, but this is a great chance to reinforce morale," said the 36-year-old midfielder.

"Going away on tour is part and parcel of a club's pre-season preparations. As well as fostering team spirit, it takes the players away from their usual environment and provides three competitive games against different opposition.

"Fitness levels have improved since last season and we can use the tour as an opportunity to get people even fitter and stronger. There will be plenty of hard work but we can also enjoy ourselves."

Swansea, who are taking their full 22-man squad plus trialists David Theobald and Jamie Wood, open the tour tomorrow (6.30pm BST) when they face Dutch non-league champions Kranenburg at the home of Texas FC on The Hague coast.

On Sunday (1.30pm BST) Cusack's men face Belgian outfit FC Kortrijk, who have a sizeable contingent of Swans supporters - 70 of them travelled across for the Third Division clash at Leyton Orient in February.

There is also a long-established relationship between Swans fans and their third opponents, Dutch First Division side FC Den Haag, which developed in the mid-1980s when Swansea were in the old First Division.

Den Haag, whose Zuidarpark Stadium home will be Swansea's training base for the six-day trip, will form the Welsh club's third and final opponents on Tuesday (6pm BST).

Cusack believes Den Haag, who narrowly missed out on a place in the Dutch Premier League last season when they were defeated by Den Bosch in a play-off, will represent the strongest challenge.

"I would expect Den Haag to be the best side we will face," said Cu-sack. "They were a Premier League side up until a couple of years ago.

"Having said that, I have done a bit of homework on Kranenburg and Kortrijk and they should not be taken for granted.

"Having played two typical early pre-season fixtures (against Leicester City and Peterborough), where we made lots of changes, we will now step things up.

"In Holland we will revert to the usual system, with less changes being made.

"The first game of the season against Rushden & Diamonds (Au-gust 10) is drawing closer and we are trying to build to a crescendo.

"The training camp has very good facilities and should be the perfect environment to keep up the hard work and move up a gear."

Swansea City will have to play their opening matches in season 2003-04 away from home because the new Morfa Stadium is unlikely to be ready until three weeks after the big kick-off.

Officially a club cannot change grounds once the season has started, but today the Football League promised it would take a 'relaxed view' in the short term and allow Swansea to play a number of away matches when their programme starts in August.

However, if there is any prolonged delay on the horizon the club may be forced to kick off somewhere else.

That could mean the Vetch, if it passes safety checks, or somewhere like Stradey Park in Llanelli.

Swansea would probably want to avoid spending a lot of money on the Vetch when it would only be used for a short space of time. Another alternative could be to move to the Morfa with only part of the ground open, if the Football League approves.

Club spokesman Peter Owen said today: "It would not be ideal kicking off with all our matches away, but the plus side is we would have lot of home games later on." "If work is still going on after September we might have to look at the possibility of playing with three sides of the Morfa ground in operation.

"We would probably be prepared to do it, but any opening after that would be a bit tame and muted." A Football League spokesman said: "We are aware of the Morfa. We would probably take a relaxed view but it is not a situation we would allow to continue indefinitely, and we understand it would be impossible to play somewhere like Cardiff.

"We would expect them to find somewhere where they could cope with crowds of around 6,000.

Bournemouth last season are an example. Their ground was not ready and they played at Dorchester Town." It was originally predicted that Morfa would be ready for the start of the 2003-04 season.

The reason for the delay is not known, but a spokesman for Swansea Council said: "We have checked with the Football League and there is no problem."

Roger Freestone is "hungrier than ever" to remain Swansea City's first-choice goalkeeper after completing his comeback from a series of injuries.

The 33-year-old 'keeper feared he would miss the start of the new campaign after he was struck by a recurring back injury last month.

And in May Freestone, who is preparing for his 12th season at the Vetch, needed surgery on his ankles after playing through the pain barrier in the final few games of last season.

But the Newport-born goalkeeper successfully returned to action in Swansea's goalless draw at Leicester City on Monday - and said he was looking forward to another 46 games between the posts.

"Having shaken off the injuries, I can't wait for the new season," said the former Chelsea man. "I'm hungrier to get started now than I ever have been.

"I was not fit to play in the friendly against Peterborough last week, which was frustrating, but I was able to get back against Leicester and it felt good.

"I'm feeling fit and fresh, which is important because I want to play another full season. It could be a big year for the club and I want to play an important part."

Along with player-coach Nick Cusack, Freestone was placed in charge of team affairs when Colin Addison and Peter Nicholas were sacked in March.

But the former Wales international, Swansea's longest-serving player having joined in September 1991, will leave coaching duties to Cusack and assistant manager Alan Curtis so he can focus on maintaining his mantle as No 1 'keeper.

Having seen off Jason Jones, one of eight players released by Cusack at the end of last season, the durable Freestone is determined to keep his latest deputy, former Liverpool trainee Andrew Marsh, waiting in the wings.

"Andrew will provide a bit of competition, which is always good, but I'm not ready to give up my position," he said.

Freestone, who is benefiting from the return of goalkeeping coach Glan Letheran, added, "I'm just glad to get through the injuries. The ankle operations were relatively minor; I was more concerned about the discs in my back.

"It was a recurrence of a problem I had about three years back, which forced me out for a month. It won't go away as the discs have degenerated through wear and tear.

"But I'm putting these problems behind me now and looking forward to our tour to Holland (starting tomorrow) and the new season, which everyone is very optimistic about - more so than last pre-season when there was less experience in the squad."

Freestone remains hopeful of attracting former club Chelsea to the Vetch for his testimonial.

"It probably won't happen until the end of the season now," he said.

"I was hoping to play the game in August, but it has been hard work getting Chelsea to agree to a date."