CORSHAM Town have begun their search for a new manager after Mark Godley resigned on Monday night due tofamily and work commitments.

Godley, who had been in charge at The Southbank for three seasons, stood down after a 3-2 home reverse at the hands of Weston St Johns.

A former Devizes and Corsham player, Godley had been mulling over his resignation in private for weeks.

His wife Dellene gave birth to the couple's second daughter, Olivia, last month, and he also holds down a high-profile position as national sales manager of Oakley UK.

Said Godley: "To be honest, I've been thinking about it for some time now. I've been doing the job for nigh on three years and I'm shattered. I've put one hell of a lot of time and effort into it and the two things that have suffered are my family and my work.

"It has been gnawing away at me for about six months. I do a lot of UK and international travel for my job and it was putting a lot of strain on the time I spent at home."

Godley realised his tenure at Corsham was coming to a close when his side went down 1-0 at Bristol Manor Farm on August 28.

He said: "The balance was wrong between the three things in my life, home, work and football. I knew after the Bristol Manor Farm game that it wouldn't be long. I had a really important meeting in Letchworth that day and during it was looking at my watch thinking about a football match.

"I was virtually chucking the guys out of the door at the end and drove like a maniac to get back. I was ten minutes late and we lost 1-0.

Optimism was high at The Southbank during pre-season, but Corsham are without a league win this term.

Godley said: "Yes, results haven't helped. But all wins would have done is paper over the cracks. I said to my assistant Dave King during the Weston game, 'win or lose, I'm finishing after this one'."

Former Larkhall boss King and player-coach John Freegard will take temporary charge for Saturday's FA Vase game against Brislington and the First Division derby against Westbury on Monday night.

Neither is interested in taking the post on a permanent basis, and Godley hopes the new man will carry on his good work. He said: "I believe in the squad we've got. It is a superb club in every aspect with tremendously committed people behind the scenes and it wasn't a decision I took lightly."

Corsham press officer John Cuthbertson said: "It was an absolute shock and caught us on the hop. We're looking for someone experienced to replace him, preferably with a Western League background."

Anyone interested in applying can contact chairman Colin Hudd on (01225) 810236 or (01249) 715609.