Cooney
has made nearly 400 appearances for the club while former Holmesdale, Phoenix
Sports and Croydon boss Beckingham is back for the third time at College Lane.
Simon
Kidby has also joined the management team, having recently been coach under
Micky Collins at league rivals Sevenoaks Town and scout at Isthmian Premier
Division side Horsham.
Chairman
Richard Tramontin told https://egtfc.co.uk:
"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 4 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. 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”. |