David Holdsworth has left his managerial position at Ilkeston Town to become Manager at Blue Square Conference Mansfield Town.

Rob Scott and Paul Hurst will take the reins at Ilkeston with Steve Thornton taking charge of off the field 1st team affairs.

There was no other indication from the club with regards to a successor to David Holdsworth.

Boston United have appointed Steve Welsh as the club’s new first team manager.

Chairman David Newton has issued a statement to bufc.co.uk…

 
“I am delighted to confirm the appointment of Steve Welsh as first team manager

“Steve has done a magnificent job since taking on the ‘caretaker role’ on November 18, which has resulted in improved performances, an improved league position, and a new confidence within the squad.

“We had a large number of applicants and we interviewed four candidates. We were looking for a dedicated manager who would sign up to what we are trying to achieve on and off the pitch. This club was bankrupt at the start of last season, and although we have made great strides a lot of work is ahead, particularly in these challenging economic times.

“Steve ticked all the boxes with the exception of actual management experience. He now has the rest of the season to move from coach to manager, a step that we believe he can take, and we will be supporting him all the way.

“Next season’s budget will be lower than this season, but will be competitive within the UniBond Premier Division — or Blue Square North if Steve achieves the near impossible! Steve is aware of the possible budget, and has accepted the situation if his contract extends beyond this season.

“Steve is very comfortable with taking the role on these terms. We need to ensure that we have the right man to take the club forward. Steve is relishing the opportunity to prove to us that he is the right man, and we will assist him in every way we can. He cannot prove himself without being given that opportunity, and we are prepared to give him that chance. Indeed in the last four weeks, he certainly earned the chance.

“Over the past month Steve had to work with his hands tied, as we did not wish to make any squad changes ahead of a permanent appointment. For the rest of this season he will be constrained by existing player contracts and budget limitations and his ability to change things this season may be somewhat limited, however he now takes full control of the squad and the budget, and we will support him in any changes he wishes to make.

“My thanks go to all applicants for the position, and I wish them well in their future careers, and I thank vice-chairman Neil Kempster and director Chris Cook for their valuable input to the selection process. The Board believe that this is the right appointment for the club at the present time.

“We will now look at the structure of the Youth Development Programme and the Centre of Excellence to ensure that they continue to move forward with Steve taking on the first team duties.

“My good wishes go to Steve and I urge the fans to get behind him and the squad, as he aims to climb the table towards the play-off positions.”

Nantwich Town have announced the loan signing of Crewe Alexandra defender Ashley Westwood. The initial loan period is for one month.

A graduate of the Alex Academy, the 18 year old versatile defender can also play as a right back, or on the right side of midfield when required.

He impressed during pre-season, with the Alex management and coaches currently of the opinion that Ashley is progressing into a very competitive and reliable player.

Nantwich Director of Football Clive Jackson met recently with Dario Gradi and during the meeting, the subject of a possible loan deal for the player was discussed. Since that meeting,

Crewe Alexandra and Ashley Westwood have agreed that a loan spell at a competitive semi-professional level is an option that should be considered whilst developing his career and having agreed the loan period, all parties are delighted that Ashley will be under the wing of respected head coach Steve Davis.

Additionally, Crewe have given notice to the FA of their approval of Westwood’s involvement with Nantwich Town in next weekend’s FA Trophy First Round tie against Hednesford Town.

Meanwhile, Westwood goes straight into the squad for this weekend’s tough in prospect UniBond Premier Division game, in which 10th placed Nantwich face second placed Guiseley at the Nethermoor Park Stadium.

Bradford Park Avenue manager Dave Cameron has resigned following their defeat by bottom club Witton Albion.

Former Liverpool midfielder and current first-team coach Mike Marsh has been placed in temporary charge.

Avenue chairman Dr John Dean said: "It is easy to forget that Dave came to us last season with our promotion dream turning into a nightmare.

"He steadied the ship and secured the Unibond Division One North title - we will be forever grateful."

Park Avenue are currently 11 points behind leaders Hednesford Town in the Unibond Premier Division after gaining promotion from the Unibond First Division North as champions.

Club spokesman and board member Kevin Hainsworth said: "We will not be rushing in to appoint someone.

"We were not expecting this from Dave but we fully respect his decision and all the board pass on their thanks and best wishes for the future."

Pilgrims boss Tommy Taylor has left Boston United by mutual consent.

Club chairman David Newton released the following statement:

"I confirm that today, by mutual consent, Tommy Taylor has left Boston United Football Club.

"Tommy took on the difficult role of assembling a squad in a little over two weeks last season, and then led the team to 10th place in a very competitive Blue Square North league. The club will always be indebted to Tommy for that achievement.

"Tommy is a hard-working manager, who was always willing to be involved in the fundraising and community aspects of the club, however results on the pitch have not gone as expected this season, and we currently languish in the relegation zone of the UniBond Premier Division, albeit with a number of games in hand.

Everyone at the club is working hard to turn around the finances of the club, and there was a danger that the poor results on the pitch would undermine that work.

"Timing is always a difficult part of these decisions, particularly taking into account the number of games we have in hand, however the fact is that we are not currently in winning form, so the points from the games in hand look less achievable.

We are still committed to getting the club promoted this season, so it was felt that we had to act sooner rather than later to keep the promotion target within our grasp.

"It has been a pleasure working alongside Tommy who is a true gentleman. I thank him for his undoubted efforts at the club, and I wish him, his lovely wife Pat, and his family all the very best for the future.

"The search for a new manager will now begin. Steve Welsh will take over as caretaker manager for the interim period. I have the highest regard for Steve, and he has done a magnificent job in his current role as Head of Youth, producing players that are now a firm part of the first team.

Steve is not only an excellent coach, but also one of the most hard-working and enthusiastic people I know. The team will certainly be in good hands during Steve's tenure, and will have a great chance to put some much-needed points on the board, and start to move us in the right direction.

"Steve took on the role without hesitation and we will be supporting him every step of the way in what will be a busy few weeks.

"As I said when we became involved, not only do we want to turn around the financial fortunes of the club, but we also want success on the pitch. With Steve's interim appointment confirmed, we will now have the time to look for a manager who will not only share our aspirations for the club, but will be able and willing to work within a budget that is affordable to the club.

"Finally, I would like to thank our fantastic fans for their continued support. The match attendance gates have held up well despite the current economic climate, and our poor home form. I now ask that you throw your full support behind Steve Welsh and the lads, and hopefully we can then start to repay the loyalty you have all shown."

FC United boss Karl Marginson is praying he can keep hold of his 20-goal top scorer Kyle Wilson as the Rebels prepare for tonight’s Gigg Lane showdown with big spenders Eastwood Town.

The striker scored again in Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Guiseley, and it seems only a matter of time before the 23-year-old former Crewe man is snapped up by a team higher up the divisions.

“I hope it doesn’t happen from a selfish point of view, but if we can help Kyle get back in the league, we would be more than happy,” says Marginson.

“When Rory Patterson was leaving in the summer we thought it would leave a hole too big to fill, but Kyle (pictured) has done it. He is playing with a smile on his face as well, and enjoying playing in front of a big crowd.”

Marginson, whose side has lost just once in 11, is tonight set to keep the same team as that which was denied victory at second-placed Guiseley by a last-minute screamer.

“The football we played at times was magnificent,” he said. “The only slight doubt is Papis Dieyte, who was a bit tired. Once he is fully fit he will be a hell of a player for us. He is strong and intelligent, works hard, tackles well, can pass a ball and has a hell of a dig.”

Eastwood are the form team of the UniBond premier division, with just one defeat in 14, and have seen off Blue Square Premier outfit Wrexham in the FA Cup to set up a second round tie with Wycombe.

Bradford Park Avenue have dispensed with the services of Assistant Manager Carl Ruffer who had joined them in the summer from Rhyl where he had played under Avenue boss Dave Cameron.

The club have made what they believe will be a significant appointment in former Liverpool and West Ham United midfielder Mike Marsh to replace him. Avenue Chief Executive Bob Blackburn said “I think bringing in somebody of Mike’s stature shows how far we have come as a club. He had been offered a full time deal with Crawley Town and there were other offers on the table for him after he left his caretaker role at Northwich Vics this week when Steve King was appointed their manager.

Although heavily involved with Liverpool Legends who play a lot of charity games around the world Marsh has promised us as much of his time as possible”.

As a result of off the field problems, Leigh Genesis have seen four players leave the club and go to various Non-league clubs.

Goalkeeper Steve Dickinson and stirker Josh Wilson have gone to Victoria Park and Burscough.

Former captain Jerome Fitzgerald has joined Unibond rivals Guiseley.

Alex Mortimer has been de-registered with the club and is now on the look out for a new club.

Even management has changed with Steve Bleasdale leaving and first team affairs being looked after by Lee Merricks.

For more see Leigh Genesis website:http://www.leighgenesis.com/

Premier Division Eastwood Town joined Curzon Ashton as the UniBond League representatives in this seasons FA Cup First Round.

Goals from Ian Holmes and Andy Todd swept the Badgers into dreamland beating Wrexham for a winnable First Round home tie against Northamptonshire side Brackley who play in the British Gas Business Premier Division.

Unfortunately in the other two replays Durham City found the visit to Histon just too much of a challenge going down 5-2. Belper Town were always chasing the game as they were two goals behind for much of the game before Anthony Wilson gave the result some respectability with a 90th minute goal to finish the night on the reverse of a 2-1 scoreline.

Manager John Reed was happ y with his team following an entertaining 5-3 win over Carlton Town in the 1st Qualifying round of the FA Trophy.

Goals from Michael Towey, Kris Mathews, new boy Chris Wood and a brace from Gav Knight gave the Bucks passage but it was hard work as Carlton came back from 2-0 and 3-2 to draw level before Gavin Knight sealed the win. John Reed gave debuts to Chris Wood (ex Maltby Main) and former Staveley player Scott Ellis with anoth new lad, Liam Davis an unused substitute.

The win means that Buxton now play at Worksop on Wednesday night (KO 7-45). The match will be played at Hucknall Town's Watnall Road ground.

Marine's climb to third in the UniBond Premier Division was overshadowed by a broken leg suffered by skipper Lee Parle in the opening stages of Saturday’s 1-1 home draw with Ashton United.

Parle was hurt after only two minutes following a tackle by Ian Kearney which earned the Ashton defender a straight red card, the game being delayed for 45 minutes as Parle received treatment on the pitch.

Mariners boss Alvin McDonald said: “The result is secondary. I put it to the team whether they wanted to carry on playing and they unanimously said yes to try to get a result for Lee.”

When play finally resumed, Karl O’Donnell put Marine ahead in the 34th minute, scoring for the third consecutive game, with Iain Howard grabbing Ashton’s equaliser midway through the second half.

Ilkeston manager David Holdsworth was philosophical about the goal that never was in the 82nd minute, as Amari Morgan-Smith's header started celebrations before Matt Wilson scooped the ball off the line.

"I thought it was a goal – although I don't know how Amari missed it if it wasn't!" said the Ilkeston Town manager.

"If you look at the initial reaction from the defender, he looks like it's gone in. I've been in the game long enough to know reactions.
"But, obviously, it wasn't, because the linesman didn't give it. It looked over but we have to get on with it."

As referee Andrew Madley waved play on, Ben Muirhead raced away on the counter-attack for Alfreton and was hauled down by centre-half Tom Jones, who was booked, the incident bringing a wry smile from Holdsworth.

"I'll call that an intelligent foul," he said.
The Robins earned praise from rival manager Nicky Law for the way they had approached the game, Ilkeston continuing to go for the win when a lot of away teams would have shut up shop.
"I wanted to win the game – I sent out a team to try to do that," said Holdsworth.

"I'm extremely proud of all my players. Everybody played their part. We knew it was going to be tough, a physical challenge, and it was a good competitive game.

"We've got to give respect to Alfreton, they're in the league above us.

"They did have a good spell but you have to ride your storm when you go away from home and we've kept a clean sheet.

"And in the second half, goodness me, we had some very good chances.

"My concern now is about the boys recovering in time for the replay. We have a couple with niggles and the boys who came off the bench have niggles too."

Law felt Ilkeston Town's forwards had looked more dangerous than his own and that the visitors had deserved to earn a replay.
"Of course, we were at home and we were looking to win," said the Alfreton Town manager.

"Ilkeston were a decent, resilient side and I thought, if anything, their forwards were a bit brighter than ours.

"I think that's what we lacked, a cutting edge up front, someone that can spin off defenders and someone with natural pace.
"I'm not making excuses but the injuries and suspensions we have at the moment were a factor.

"It meant we had some square pegs in rounds holes.
"We had a spell there, just before half-time, where we had some pressure. Our superior strength showed and we probably played a bit more like a Conference North side for 10 minutes and we could have capitalised but we failed to do so.

"But I think, in the end, it was a fair result between two decent teams. It's mission accomplished for them. They were difficult to break down.

"If I'm honest, I don't think we looked like scoring and that's something we'll have to address for the replay."

Law, like counterpart Holdsworth, was not in the best possible position to tell whether Morgan-Smith's late header had crossed the line or not but the Reds boss admitted to some relief when the referee waved play on.

"The linesman was in a decent position and the referee didn't look fazed at all," said Law.

"To be fair, I was a bit surprised. I saw all the commotion and I thought it had gone in.

"Obviously, we're pleased it didn't and we go again.
"We'll have Jordan Hall back from suspension, which will give us one different option but that's something to mull over."

It was too soon for Law to judge whether influential left-back Anton Brown might be available, after he was forced out of the action with a bang on the head at half-time.

"The doctor came in at half-time and told us Anton had mild concussion and there was no way he could carry on," said Law.
"But Matt Wilson, who hasn't played for three weeks and has just come back from loan at Worksop, came in and did himself proud playing out of position at left-back."