Long Moves To Stourbridge

Ian Long is to become manager of Stourbridge after a spell as manager of Alvechurch and before them Tividale. His assistant Richard Colwell is also moving with him.

"We are delighted to welcome Ian and Richard to Stourbridge," said Stourbridge chairman Andy Pountney.

"Ian was among 40 applicants for the vacant manager's role and I have to say we had some very strong candidates with interest from far and wide in this country. It was heart-warming to see. I would like to thank everybody who contacted us about the post. I am sorry that I haven't been able to get back to them all, but I have spoken today with the other candidates that we have interviewed in the past few days to tell them that they were unsuccessful on this occasion.

"In the end we couldn't get away from what Ian had achieved as manager at both Tividale and Alvechurch. His record speaks for itself and we know only too well from recent experience what a strong and competitive side he was able to put together at Alvechurch without having the level of resources at his disposal of some of the other clubs in the same division last season. I, and my fellow directors look forward to working with Ian, Richard and the rest of his team and hopefully the news of this appointment will be exciting for our supporters as we look ahead to next season."