DARRYL Knights has been named as new Stourbridge manager after the club parted company with Liam McDonald.
Knights takes over at the Glassboys after a spell as first team coach at Bromsgrove Sporting.
The club issued a statement on Sunday saying McDonald has left ‘following mutual discussions’.
But it added that uncertainty surrounding Stourbridge’s ground, along with ‘financial issues’ had left them with ‘no choice’.
Chairman Andy Pountney the club faced ‘having half the ground shut down’.
Knights’ assistant manager will be Tyrone Barnett who played for the club at the end of the season.
After stepping into the Glassboys hotseat, Knights told the club’s official website: “Stourbridge is my club and I’ve been lucky enough to be part of it for a number of years meaning I know it inside out. For me, its a privilege to be given the opportunity to manage this fantastic club.
“I want to be the man to bring the good times back and put smiles back on the fans’ faces along with my management team who all share the same passion and ambition as me for the club. I’m excited and can’t wait to get started.”
Barnett added: “I want to thank you for trusting me with the role of Player/Assistant Manager. I’m grateful for the opportunity and excited to contribute to the team in every way by using my extensive knowledge and experience in the game. I hope to bring the club success and I’m looking forward to seeing us grow together.”
But chairman Andy Pountney’s weekend statement addressed McDonald’s departure.
It said: “The decision has been incredibly difficult, when we appointed Liam and his team, our intentions were to get us back into the top half of the league and pushing for promotion over the next few years.
“We have no doubt we would have built on that this year and, given we finished last season with our best points total and highest position for some time, it showed that we were heading in the right direction.
“But sadly we did not envisage that the issues at the ground would become worse and we are now faced with having half the ground shut down.
“Since we have found ourselves in this position we have been trying desperately to get support from the FA and the Council and, whilst we are still in discussions with both respective parties, we don’t have any concrete answers that allow us to resolve our issues.
“We would like to wish Liam and all his team all the very best for the near and distant future and thank them all for their support and effort over the last thirteen months
.
“They have all shown true professionalism, dedication and integrity during some extremely testing times.”
