CARETAKER-MANAGER Stuart Heath has called for every part of the Dorchester Town set-up to pull together in preparation for their home encounter with Chesham United tomorrow (3pm).

The county town club decided to relieve manager Phil Simkin of his duties late on Wednesday evening, and the club issued a statement yesterday regarding the managerial situation.

The statement reads: “Dorchester Town Football Club assistant-manager Stuart Heath has agreed to take the team into Saturday’s home game against Chesham United.

“A meeting is planned for Monday evening to further discuss the vacant manager's role and all the options available to the club moving forward.”

With Heath given at least one game in the hot seat at the Avenue, he has called for positivity, as well as asking his players to prove to the Magpies’ fans that they care about the club.

He told Echosport: “I would like to thank Phil for giving me the opportunity a couple of years ago when we didn’t really know each other that well, and he was good enough to give me the chance.

“It has been a difficult few days with the Weymouth defeat and Phil going. I think the main message to everyone is that we have to be positive.

“We have had three defeats in a row and the manager has gone, so everyone needs to pull together on and off the pitch, the supporters, the board, the players and the coaching staff, and we need to perform better.

“The players have shown glimpses this season of what they can do if they play to their full potential, they haven’t done that enough and they know that.

“They need to show the supporters that they really care about this club, and that means maximum effort every time they pull the black and white shirt on.

“I have seen in the past that the supporters of Dorchester can get behind the team with great vigour, but they need some encouragement to do that.

“We need to get results on the pitch first and foremost and get the supporters behind us, football changes quickly and while it has not been a nice week with Phil going, it can all change if we get a result on the pitch.”

Former Portland United manager Heath remained tight-lipped on whether he would like the job on a full-time basis, and claimed that his focus was all about securing three points against 15th-placed Chesham tomorrow.

He added: “Quite honestly I am just looking at the next couple of days, beyond Saturday night I am not really thinking about it.

“We need to pick the right squad and the right team on Saturday to get it right first and get the result.”

The Magpies do however look set to be without midfielder Nick Crittenden for around four weeks after he had to be replaced during the derby clash with Weymouth with a hamstring injury.

Magpies (from): Walker-Harris, Lanahan, Buckley, S Walker, N Walker, Gleeson, Godfrey, Smeeton, Cann, Agbo, Woodland, Smith, Joyce, Murphy, Godfrey, Hanger