Ray Nye has finally managed his team Plumpton Athletic Reserves for the first time since his appointment in October.

And was the three-month wait worth it? Judging by the 9-0 Mid Sussex League Division Seven defeat against West Hoathly, probably not.

But Ray, 51, admitted: "At least the boys got a game. It has been a long time. We haven't been able to train, so for many it was the first time they had kicked a ball for months."

Nye had been constantly bragging how he was still boasting an unbeaten record, as each week's games were cancelled.

He even jested with club officials that they should get him to replace first team manager Dudley Christensen. Ray was getting used to the routine of phoning up players to make a team each week, then calling them again on Saturday morning to inform them of the cancellation.

He said: "It was always a case of waiting at the end of a phone for the cancellation call. The phone rang on Saturday morning and I thought 'here we go'. But it was a call from West Hoathly to tell me the game was definitely on. I thought my hearing had failed me."

Ray has been involved with the club since leaving school at the age of 15 and never experienced such a run without a fixture.

He said: "The weather seems to have eased off a little recently, so I'm expecting for us to get quite a run going now."