STAND Athletic went back home to appoint their new boss following the departure of management team Nick Davis and Nick Woods.

The Latics have turned to former Prestwich Heys manager Joe Murty to pull things together after the close season upheaval at Ewood Bridge.

Following the decision not to promote Stand after ground grading, despite the fact they had won the North West Counties Division Two championship last season, it was feared there would be a mass exodus.

That transpired with Davis resigning and Woods joining Manchester League side Unsworth.

Several players also left including skipper Steve Stott, Steve Carroll, Chris Denham, Tommy Allen, Lee Wilkinson, Stuart Telfer and Steve Davis.

That leaves a massive chasm to fill and while Murty will have his own ideas on who to bring in, including, no doubt, one or two players from his previous club, the feeling is Stand may not be quite the force they were last season.

Certainly, the days of spashing out big money, in relative terms, appear to have gone following the resignation of chairman John Barrington at the end of last season.

And the Latics may look to their reserves to fill some of the gaps as they rebuild for the new season.