Ashford United name former Cray Valley and Herne Bay manager Kevin Watson as their new boss

Ashford United have appointed Kevin Watson as their new manager.

Watson joins the Nuts & Bolts as Tommy Warrilow’s successor after standing down at Herne Bay.

The former Chatham and Cray Valley boss was among more than 35 applicants for the position.

However, once he expressed his interest, there was no need to interview anybody else.

Watson led Cray Valley to Southern Counties East title glory and the FA Vase final at Wembley in 2019.

He also guided the Millers to the Isthmian South East play-offs last season, when they were edged 1-0 by Ashford in the semi-finals.

“We’re delighted to bring Kevin to the club,” said Nuts & Bolts owner Don Crosbie.

“He’s got pedigree and has had great success.

“When we decided we’d gone as far as we could with Tommy, we thought about lots of candidates but the one that stuck out was Kevin.

“We’ve played against his teams for a few years, they’re always well set up, they play lovely football and they’re difficult to play against.

“We said it would be great to get Kevin but by that time we’d had 12/14 applications come in.

“All of a sudden, Kevin’s came in, which was great.

“It was almost like, ‘Wow, things are falling into place for us’.

“I gave him a ring and invited him in and by the time we’d gone through the chat we’d had over 35 applications.

“That’s fantastic but you’re better off sticking with someone you know, someone you think is proven, someone who’s always impressed you - and that’s Kevin, 100%.”

Watson, a head teacher, had clearly done his homework before meeting the Ashford board.

Crosbie was impressed with his knowledge of the club, leaving him in no doubt he was the man for the job.

“Kevin’s got great ability and he’s also very intelligent,” said Crosbie.

“When we had the