Jimmy McFarlane resigns as AFC Hornchurch manager

Club legend Jimmy McFarlane has resigned as manager of AFC Hornchurch after ten years in charge.
The long-standing boss decided the time was right to stand down following a 3-1 defeat at Haringey Borough on Saturday, their seventh game without a win in the Bostik League.
McFarlane became the club’s longest serving manager in December last year, leading the Urchins for the 460th time, beating Arthur Wenborn’s previous record.
Before venturing into management McFarlane played 107 times for Hornchurch making his debut in 2006.
He became manager at the start of the 2009/10 season and won promotion to the Conference South in 2012 and last season they won the Bostik North title.
Chairman Alex Sharp said: “Today marks the end of an era for AFC Hornchurch as I can confirm we have reluctantly accepted the resignation of Jim McFarlane, who steps down as Manager after more than 10 years in charge of the club.
“Jim felt the time was right to stand down and allow someone else to come into the club and move us forward with their own ideas and methods and so today we start the search for a manager who will help us shape the future of the club going forward.
“During this period, Colin McBride will take charge of 1st team affairs as it is important to us that we take our time in finding the right person to fill the massive gap that will be left by Jim.
“It is very difficult to put into words how much respect and love we at the club have for Jim and knowing how much this club means to him makes us realise how difficult a decision this will have been, we are forever grateful for everything he has done for us, getting us to where we are today and setting the standard for non-league football managers across the country.
“It is a very sad day for the club, but we thank Jim for the massive contribution he has put into AFC Hornchurch and are very hopeful that he will remain involved, as Jim’s values and standards are exactly what we will be looking for in our next manager.
“We will keep you informed of progress as we start the search today.”