DARREN Edwards has vowed to give new blood their chance at Yate Town during his term as interim player-manager at Lodge Road.

The striker is looking to re-organise the squad after the resignation of manager Craig Laird, his assistant Rob Boyd and then a number of players who followed the pair out of the Bluebells’ exit door.

That left Edwards, in his first job as manager, trying to find players to fill the gaps in order to field a team against Taunton Town in the Evo-Stik Southern League Division One South and West on Saturday.

Several players, including Laird’s sons Callum and Jamie, Alec Fiddes and Harry Horton, all left the club last week, while two players were suspended for red cards and Edwards himself decided to move to the sideline and oversee the squad from there rather than play.

There were eight missing in total and then four declared themselves unavailable before the match due to illnesses.

It was a torrid introduction to football management for 35-year-old Edwards and, as he began his first full week in the role ahead of Saturday’s clash with Didcot Town, he explained how tough those first few days were and how he intends to give players a chance.

Edwards, who is working alone in the role with no assistant manager, said: “Obviously, there has been a lot of upheaval with players leaving the club and with lots of different rumours about what is going on there.

“We have had a lot of seven-day approaches (transfer approaches) put into us. With myself stepping to manager, there have been six players who have moved on from the club, while Jamie Cox and Lewis Powell are both suspended for three games because of their red cards they picked up.

“It was a headache last week. I was away on holiday at Bluestone National Park in Pembrokeshire and, from the moment I was asked to do it (be interim player-manager), my head was stuck to the phone.

“Weston were very good to help out with some lads for us to get a side out. Taunton Town have one of the strongest squads in the league and we were down there with a scratch side but we could have been in front at half-time.”

Yate were level at the interval at 1-1 but two second-half goals from Taunton saw them to a 3-1 victory.

Edwards added: “We had a clear penalty which was not given and they had a penalty in similar circumstances which was given. We put so much effort into the game but we did not have enough left in the tank at the end.

“At 2-1, I tried to force the issue to make something happen but they scored again.”

Now that is over, Edwards has to look at the rest of the season. As Yate are mid-table – not going to reach the play-offs and in no danger of being relegated – he can experiment with players for next season.

There could be transfer activity with some seven-day approaches made for players, but the new interim player-manager is anxious to look at the bigger picture.

“The squad has been pulled apart for the last week since Craig moved on. It’s time for everyone to look at where the club has been, what mistakes have been made and move it forward.

“We have a lot of young players and we want to see what they can do. We want to get some wins in but we want to see what we have got in the squad and what we can work with. Quite a few of the boys have already done a great job with us.”

As for the future, Edwards said: “A lot of it is up in the air about where we want to go. I have not had a chance to sit down with the chairman and the committee yet. When we have time, we will talk.”