Dave Hoole and Dale Spragg return to revive relegated Clipstone

Hoole brings with him credentials of a modern, successful manager following his spell as the reserve team manager at Matlock Town before he took the first team job on an interim basis.

After one defeat in eight matches, moving from third bottom to mid-table, Matlock then appointed Hoole as the permanent manager in April 2018. Following this Hoole took the first team manager reigns at the Cobras in 2019 before departing in November 2021 due to unforeseen work commitments.

Hoole said on his return: “It feels great to be back and myself and Dale can’t wait to get started again.

“It may be a different league, so either way it will be a challenge, but one we’re looking forward to.

“There is plenty of work to be done rebuilding but we relish all the challenges along the way.”

The club are yet to be told what league they will be competing in next season, but Hoole added: “Clipstone deserves to be higher, the work done over the last three years is nothing less than remarkable and this is now a 'club' first team, reserves, Clipstone Colts, volunteers, staff, managers, committee and supporters, and the future is looking very good.

“Growth and sustainability is something that everyone at the club is onboard with.

“I know that the support from the fans depends on the games you win and how you win them - playing attractive football - so hopefully they can all get down and back the boys and the club in our attempts to bounce back.”

There were a large number of great local candidates for the manager's position and the committee are hopeful some of these will become part of the backroom staff at the club to further bolster the future of local talent playing at Clipstone.

Vice-chairman Paul Griffiths said: “We’ve invested a lot of time and money at the club to ensure that we are in a strong position to move forward sustainably.

“With a new reserves team joining the ranks there will be plenty of opportunities for local talent to shine.

“With the management team still not yet appointed for the reserves, we are hopeful that we can get some of the applicants involved to allow us to provide one of the best offerings of football at all ages as the pathway from U7s through to first team football is for the first time complete.

“We’re thrilled to have Dave and Dale on board again as they share the same ethics and desire as everyone within the club and we are sure whoever they choose to join the backroom staff will share the same beliefs.”