“Damo” needs no introduction to the club after spending the past two seasons in LE9 and stepping up to manage the club during the run-in last season following the departure of Jimmy Ginnelly. An experienced non-league player and manager, he is no stranger to the NPL Midlands Division, having spent six years at Shepshed Dynamo, where he guided the club to promotion to Step 4 after 10 years at Step 5, before helping establish them as a solid Step 4 side.

He began his managerial career at Leicester Nirvana, where he won the East Midlands Counties League and League Cup, as well as reaching a County Cup final. He then moved to Gresley Rovers, reaching the Derbyshire Senior Cup final and keeping the club safe from relegation before joining the aforementioned Shepshed Dynamo.

He is joined by former teammate Daryll Thomas. The pair spent time together during their playing days at Shepshed Dynamo in 2004, and Thomas later took his first step into management at Carlton Town, where he worked as a first-team coach. In 2023, he moved to Eastwood CFC in the UCL North. During his time there, he cultivated a winning mentality, helping save the club from relegation in his first season before narrowly missing out on the play-offs in his first full campaign. The 2024/25 season ended in heartbreak after Eastwood narrowly missed out on the league title and were beaten in the play-off semi-finals by one of next season’s opponents, Boston Town.

Finally, they will be joined by first-team coach Andrew Wilson, who also joined the club for the run-in last season. Andrew has managerial experience at Step 2 with Histon, where he helped the club retain their league status, along with a spell at Corby Town. He has also held coaching roles at Leicester City Academy, as well as scouting positions with Reading, AFC Barrow and Kettering Town, and becomes the final part of the management team for the upcoming season.

Photos with thanks to Chris Simpson