TIVIDALE Football Club are delighted to announce Phil Male and Ross Thorpe as their new Joint Manager team ahead of the 2015-16 season.

Male, 36, retired as a player at the end of the 2014-15 campaign at Sutton Coldfield Town, and made several appearances for Tivi under Dean Whitehouse in the West Midlands Regional League.

Thorpe, 33, who retired from playing football at the age of 17 due to injury has managed Alvechurch, and held coaching roles at both Sutton Coldfield Town and Coleshill Town respectively having become a qualified coach at the tender age of just 21.

Football General Manager, Leon Murray, said “I’m pleased we’ve reached the conclusion of our managerial search because we need to start preparing for the 2015-16 season, and pre-season isn’t too far away now.

“Phil and Ross have experience of the EVO-STIK Northern Premier League, Division One South, and that was a key ingredient during this process.

“We’ve a lot of hard work to get through in the next few weeks, particularly on the playing side to ensure we have a competitive side for the start of the season.”

Dale’s Head of Communications, Steven Beech, added “I’m delighted to welcome both Phil and Ross to the club. We initially held discussions with them on Wednesday, and we were very impressed with what they had to say.

“Phil requires no introduction having played here, and he’s a local lad, too. He’s extremely popular in these parts and Phil’s influence will be of paramount importance as we embark on our second year in the EVO-STIK Northern Premier League, Division One South.

“Ross is an extremely talented coach, he’s only 33 but his CV speaks volumes. We’ve done our due diligence and we received excellent feedback about Ross, not only as a coach, but also as an individual.

“We can’t wait to get started.”