Thatcham Town Football Club: Jamie Leacock pays the price for the Kingfisher's poor run of form
Jamie Leacock has paid a high price for Thatcham Town's recent poor run of form.
Head coach Leacock left the club by mutual consent last weekend, less than 24 hours after the 3-0 home defeat at the hands of Guernsey in Isthmian League South Central Division.
The result leaves the Kingfishers four points clear of the relegation zone, with nine games remaining.
Leacock has had a tough time since taking over at the Stacatruc Stadium in June 2020 following the departure of Danny Robinson to Hungerford.
He had to rebuild the squad from scratch and was not helped by the impact of Covid.
A disappointed Leacock said: "The performance against Guernsey was not good, so the club made a decision and I am no longer there.
"It has been a massive rebuild and my remit at the club was to start again with a totally new squad.
"We have been flirting with relegation for a lot of the season, but we have never slipped into the danger zone and I am confident we will stay up.
"It is a results business and I understand that, but I think I will be leaving the club in a position where they will be safe.
"It is disappointing because we just had to get through this season and I could have continued to build the squad.
"The club expected a bit more – whether that was realistic, I don't know – but I cannot shy away from the fact that the performances in the last few weeks have not been good enough.
"I have worked extremely hard in difficult circumstances and I can walk away knowing that I have met my objectives.
"When Danny left I had to start again from scratch.
"Then last year, I lost my two best players – Conor Lynch to Basingstoke Town and Jordan Alves to North Leigh – but that is the nature of football."
First-team coach Yashwa Romeo took over as manager in time for Saturday's vital trip to bottom club Staines Town.
A statement from Thatcham Town said: "It is with great regret that we have come to this decision but the last few weeks have been disappointing.
"We would like to thank Jamie for all his hard work in rebuilding a team under very difficult conditions.
"Yashwa Romeo will step up and take control of the first team management, while Shaun Allaway and Colin Charles will continue as part of Yash's team.
"We would also like to welcome Sam Loades, who will come in as first team coach."
