Popular Pitmen duo back in town

Smith and Chambers, pictured, returned for a second spell at Keys Park on Thursday following the departure of Neil Tooth on Wednesday night just seven games into the new season.

The duo, who left AFC Telford in June following a boardroom shake-up at the Bucks, led the Pitmen back to the second tier of the Non-League pyramid in 2013 following an eight-year absence.

During his 271 games in charge between 2010 and 2015, Smith and his assistant manager recorded a total of 151 victories while guiding the club to the Southern League Cup, Birmingham Senior Cup, Staffordshire Senior Cup and EVO-STIK League Premier Division play-off final titles.

Smith told fans that he and Chambers couldn't turn down the chance to return after their previous successes in a statement on the EVO-STIK League Premier club's website.

Smith said: “It is obviously a massive surprise for us how quickly this has all happened. I still have a lot of feelings for this football club, even when I wasn’t involved, and when the chance came to return I couldn’t turn it down. I’m delighted to be appointed as manager of Hednesford Town Football Club. It is a fantastic club and this is a job that I am really looking forward to getting stuck into."

He added: "I know that we are perhaps a week or so behind other clubs but in the coming days I shall be speaking to Hednesford players from last season and also to other players about potentially signing as we look to build a squad. Having got Sutton promoted into this league, and then finishing twelfth in the first season, I know what it is all about and I can’t wait to get going with Hednesford."

Tooth, who left Sutton Coldfield Town in November 2016, became the first managerial casualty of the 2017-18 EVO-STIK League season when his short reign ended on Wednesday night after less than five months.

Appointed back in May as the successor to Gary Birch, the former Royals boss departed 48 hours after his side went down to their fourth league defeat of the campaign, Monday night's 2-0 loss at Stourbridge in the EVO-STIK League's top flight. The Pitmen also went out of the Emirates FA Cup on Saturday after a 2-0 defeat at Boston Town in the First Qualifying Round.

Image courtesy of cannockmercury.co.uk & Hednesford Town

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