Luke McAvoy and Ben Farmer couldn’t get off to a winning start as the new managers of Ely City on Saturday in the Eastern Counties League on Saturday.
The Premier Division strugglers twice came from behind at Whitton United but could find a leveller for the new duo in the 3-2 defeat.
FT @WhittonUnitedFC 3-2 @ElyCityFC
Something to work on – showed some spirit to come back to 2-2
— Ely City FC (@ElyCityFC) January 4, 2020
As reported in The Non-League Paper on Sunday, they’d been running Kershaw Premier League outfit Cambridge University Press, who knocked Ely out of the Cambridgeshire Invitation Cup this season, before taking the helm at a Step 5 club for the first time.
The duo succeeded Brady Stone who stepped down after nearly six years at The Demcom Stadium, pictured.
Together with his number two Martin Grey, former Robins player Brady signed off after Christmas with a 1-1 draw at home to Haverhill Rovers.
Farmer told Sunday’s paper they were “buzzing to get going with a really good club” before the weekend’s draw.
A City statement announcing their appointment said: “Luke and Ben felt the time was right for them to step up tyo the next level and showed great positivity in wanting the role.”
Stone, who made more than 200 appearances as a player and was at the helm for more than 300 games, told fans it had been a “pleasure” to manage the Robins.
In a post on Twitter after standing down, he also praised the contribution of his number two Grey.
Thank you to everyone over the last 6 years for everything to many people to thank. But 1 thank u goes to @martingrey83 loved every min mate ? nearly 200 games as a player and nearly 300 as a manager for @ElyCityFC been a pleasure ??? pic.twitter.com/FlWRmcdIBy
— brady stone (@bradystone86) December 27, 2019
Image courtesy of @ElyCityFC/Twitter
