Luke Carpenter steps down as boss of Southern Counties East Premier Division Tunbridge Wells

Tunbridge Wells are on the hunt for a new manager - less than 10 days away from their opening match of the new season.

Wells revealed Luke Carpenter had stepped down as their boss on Thursday, ahead of their final pre-season friendly this weekend, with a home match in the Southern Counties East Premier Division against Hollands & Blair on the horizon next Saturday.

Carpenter wrote on Twitter: “With a heavy heart, I have made the decision to step down as manager of Tunbridge Wells FC.

“While the easy assumption would be that this is a result of Tuesday's match [a 5-1 loss to Redhill] - which was beyond disappointing - it’s not a contributing factor towards my decision. I have been discussing this with the board for a while and feel the club is heading in a direction that requires a different manager.

“I would like to thank the board for the support and trust shown to me throughout my time, as well as the players, volunteers and staff for the commitment and effort given.

“Lastly, I would like to thank all of the fans for the incredible support, home and away, rain or shine.

“I wish everyone at Tunbridge Wells nothing but success for the future.”

In Thursday’s statement, Tunbridge Wells said: “After long discussions between the chairman [Scott Bartlett] and manager yesterday evening, the club accepted Luke Carpenter's resignation as first-team manager.

“We would like to place on record our thanks to Luke for all his hard work over the last 14 months.

“Steph Harper, Jon Shea and Adam Porter will take charge of Saturday's final pre-season friendly against Eastbourne Town at the Culverden Stadium.”

Wells are the second club from their division on the look-out for a new manager, Mickey Doyle having stood down as boss of