Rugby Town are pleased to announce the arrival of Lee Colkin as the new first team manager.

By RUGBYTOWNFC.COM

	Lee Colkin (left) and assistant Michael Love (right) join chairman Brian melvin for their first trianing session

Colkin replaces the outgoing incumbent Tony Dobson who resigned less than two weeks ago and will be meeting the players for the first time when they take training on Tuesday evening. Colkin will be assisted by Michael Love.

Colkin and Love are experienced campaigners within both the professional game and at a high level of the non-league football pyramid.

35-year-old Colkin had an eight year professional career, starting as an apprentice at Northampton Town, and then going on to feature in more than 100 first team matches for the Cobblers. He also played at Leyton Orient, before making a successful move into the non-league game - where he featured for a number of clubs including Hednesford, Morecambe, Burton Albion, Tamworth, Hinckley, Kettering and Hucknall within the Conference structure.

Love, also aged 35, started his career at Hinckley, before playing at two Football League clubs - Wigan and Wycombe Wanderers. A three year stint in the Conference at Stevenage was followed by a six year one at Nuneaton - where he was part of the side that famously took then-Premier League Middlesbrough to a replay in the 3rd round of the F.A.Cup in 2005. He then returned to Hinckley for a season, before playing at Brackley for a similar length of time.

Colkin's recent playing career has been hampered by injury, although he did feature for both Atherstone and Stratford in 2008-09. Love was part of the same team at Stratford, before moving to Unibond League Shepshed this summer.

Town Chairman Brian Melvin explained the decision to appoint the duo : "The Board were very impressed with Lee and feel that Michael will be able to provide excellent support for him. Both Lee and Michael have a good pedigree within the game and came across very well at interview stage."

He continued : "They also have a good network of contacts throughout the game - which we feel is very important for the testing situation we currently find ourselves in."

"We had more than twenty applications for the position - and the quality of the candidates was probably the highest overall that we have had for a vacant manager's role in my time at the club. Therefore it was a tough decision, but we firmly believe that Lee has the necessary background, abilities and enthusiasm to succeed in the job."

Lee and assistant Michael - who are close friends off the pitch - are clearly relishing the opportunity of kicking off their football management career.

Colkin said : "Michael and I have known each other for more than twenty years, and we have discussed many times the possibility of going into management together, so when this position came along it was an ideal opportunity."

"We know our job is first and foremost to make the team hard to beat again. We will be looking to instil a siege mentality into the players and get a strong team spirit going. It's important everyone works together to try and remedy the situation we are currently in."

Love added : "I am really excited by the challenge. We know it will be a tough challenge, but it is a good level of football and the facilities and infrastructure here are great, so it's an excellent opportunity for us to prove ourselves."

"We know there is no magic wand that we can wave here. However we will try and keep it simple for the players, make sure they know their roles on the pitch, and most importantly try and make it fun for them too at the same time."

Colkin confirmed that they would be looking to bring in players ahead of their first game against Merthyr Tydfil a week on Saturday, but also reassured the current squad that there is still an opportunity for them to be part of their plans.

He said : "We will take a look at what we have got here at the moment in training and also maybe arrange a practice game to see them in a match situation."

"Of course, we will be looking to bring in some new faces - as numbers are a bit light anyway, but the slate is clean as far as the current squad is concerned and it is up to them to show us they want to be a part of the club."