East Grinstead Town appoint Drew Cooney and Tony Beckingham as joint-managers to keep them in the Isthmian League

EAST GRINSTEAD TOWN have appointed from within as Drew Cooney and Tony Beckingham were appointed as joint-managers last night, replacing Tony Reid who parted company with the club on 5 November.

Left-back Cooney has made nearly 400 appearances for the club while former Holmesdale, Phoenix Sports and Croydon (among other clubs) manager Beckingham is stepping into the dug-out for the third time for the College Lane outfit.

The much-travelled Simon Kidby has also joined the management team.  His last role was head of recruitment at Horsham and locally was part of Micky Collins' management set-up at Sevenoaks Town.

Chairman Richard Tramontin said in a statement: “We’re really pleased that Drew and Tony have accepted the challenge.  We think they will bring stability and can take the club forward.

“We did consider other candidates but the management committee were very impressed with the presentation they put forward and their desire to progress the club in the short and long-term.

“Their priority is to win matches and make sure we remain a Step Four club but one which is looking upwards rather than over our shoulders.

“The committee were also impressed by their long-term vision, not least their desire to get more locally based players into the first-team squad, especially from our existing youth set-up.

“Drew has got a lot of respect in the changing room and isn’t ready to hang up his boots just yet, but he’s already planning when he retires and this is the first step, working alongside Tony who has lots of managerial experience and knows how the club operates.

“They will be adding to their coaching team in the next few weeks but I’m delighted that they will have Simon Kidby as part of their management group.

The Wasps went down to a 2-0 home defeat to Ramsgate last weekend, as Cooney took temporary charge of the West Sussex outfit.

“Simon has extensive contacts at all levels of the game and will play a big part in our recruitment going forward. 

“We are hoping to have some new faces in the squad in time for Saturday’s home game against Corinthian.

“As a club we have a lot going for us, not least our pitch and facilities. Results need to improve as everyone acknowledges but we’re looking forward to what we hope will be a successful and progressive era under Drew and Tony.”

East Grinstead Town are third-from-bottom (eighteenth-place) in the Isthmian League South East Division table, having collected two wins and three draws from their 12 games.

Whitstable Town (five points from 12 games) and Phoenix Sports (four points from 12) are below them in the table and the Kent pair have also had a change of manager this season with Keith McMahon and Steve O’Boyle replacing Lloyd Blackman and Paul Bryon respectively.

Visit East Grinstead Town’s website: www.egtfc.co.uk