Luke Rooney placed in interim charge as Erith & Belvedere part company with Danny Murphy and Marlon Patterson following Chatham Town humiliation

ERITH & BELVEDERE co-chairman Adrian Deane says the club have parted company with joint-managers Danny Murphy and Marlon Patterson on the back of their heavy defeat at Chatham Town this afternoon.

Second-placed Chatham Town sealed promotion into the Isthmian League after humiliating Erith & Belvedere 10-1 at Maidstone Road, inflicting Erith & Belvedere’s second joint-biggest hammering since the War.

Kevin Hake’s side are two points adrift of leaders Sheppey United with three league games remaining, while Erith & Belvedere are in sixth-place in the Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division table with 62 points from their 35 league outings.

“That’s just football, after a very heavy defeat to Chatham Town, I have been relieved of my management role at Erith & Belvedere,” said Murphy.

“I’m happy with how things went this season and I’ve learnt a lot.  Best of luck for the rest of the season.”

Murphy and Patterson were in charge of 51 games in all competitions and the club won 27 of their games, drew eight and lost 16 times.

But both paid the price as Chatham Town went into free-scoring mode to celebrate winning promotion alongside Sheppey United.

“Do you know what it is, both Danny and Marlon, I love them to bits, they’re both good boys, really good boys and they’ve done a good job for us,” said Deane.

“It was just a mutual decision. We had a chat and that was it.  It was on the back of a heavy defeat, which wasn’t ideal.  Fair play to Chatham, they done what they needed to do but they go with heavy hearts because I really like the boys, I really do and they are good.

“I don’t want to come across negative with these gentlemen because they’re absolutely great and they’ve been good servants.  I do wish them all the best.

“I don’t care what level you’re at, you shouldn’t be getting beat 10-1 but it is what it is.  They’re really good boys. It was a mutual decision. We had a chat and that was it. There were no fallings out or no bust ups or anything like that. It was the right time.”

Reflecting on the pair’s time at Park View Road, Deane replied: “Successful.  Over the past couple of years’ it’s been a club in transition. We’re hopefully going to be top five or six finish compared to where we were finishing prior to lockdown really, where the club was at, they were at the foot of the table.

“Some of the credit has to go to Del Oldfield as well, who set some of the foundations for the platform for the boys to come in and do what they did.

“I think it was a successful time for them but all good things come to an end, unfortunately.”

Erith & Belvedere have appointed senior player Luke Rooney, 31, as interim manager for the last three games of the season.

The Deres welcome seventh-placed Erith Town to Park View Road on Good Friday, 15 April, before making the trip to Bromley to play Holmesdale on Easter Monday, before completing their campaign at relegation-threatened Rusthall on 23 April.

Deane added:  “So Luke Rooney is going to take the team until the end of the season.

“Luke’s a very experienced player, got great knowledge, good contacts and we will hopefully be in safe hands.

“Sometimes and today was the perfect example, you’ve got to make a decision with your head and not your heart and take away the romance of it.”