Manager Jay Saunders has left Tonbridge earlier than planned following news of his appointment at Folkestone.

Saunders was due to see out the season with Angels before taking charge at Cheriton Road in the summer.

But on Monday night Tonbridge released a statement saying it had been “mutually agreed” he would “leave with immediate effect” along with his management team of Tom Parkinson and Lloyd Blackman, who are also joining Invicta.

Captain Scott Wagstaff has been named caretaker manager for Saturday’s home game against Farnborough, assisted by Adam Deadman.

“We thank Jay, Lloyd and Tom for all their efforts and wish them the best for the future. It’s been a real pleasure working with them all,” said Tonbridge chair Sophie Purves.

Tonbridge have interviewed eight candidates to succeed Saunders.

Speaking hours before news of his departure, Purves said “we envisage our new manager starting in the close season, not before”.

But that could now change.

“We’re going through a process at the moment,” said Purves.

“We want to make sure we get the right person, who’s the right fit for the football club.

“We have interviewed eight people, as it stands, and we’re just going to continue in that process.

“We’ve spoken to people who have applied and people we’ve identified, that we think are worth speaking to and they’ve expressed interest as well.

“It’s been an interesting process and we’ve met some really good people.”

Speaking of the qualities Tonbridge are looking for, Purves added: “We are a supporter-owned football club, so respecting the model is important, and understanding how we work as a board.

“We’re very much a united board, so that’s been really helpful.

“I think everyone’s on the same page and we want somebody who’s going to take us forward.

“Jay’s done a great job establishing us as a strong contender in the National League South, so we just want to make sure we continue that journey of pushing each year to try and get into the play-off positions.

“We’ve made a lot of progress in a short space of time, on and off the pitch, so it’s just making sure we appoint the right person to continue on this journey.”

Tonbridge are about to complete their sixth season back in National League South, having won promotion under Steve McKimm via the play-offs in 2019.

They’re established at the level, going toe-to-toe with a number of full-time clubs, and Purves believes it’s an attractive job for potential managers.

“We don’t have the biggest budget in our league because we’re part-time, we’re not a full-time club,” said Purves.

“The top positions in the league are all full-time clubs, so we understand that.

“It’s a healthy budget and it’s a club with a good reputation in the football industry.

“We have a good level of support, a good fanbase, and I think anyone looking at it from the outside can see it’s got a lot of potential, and we’re quite a well-respected board of directors.

“We’ve done a good job and from the comments Jay has made regarding his departure, I think we had a good relationship with our manager and we give our manager the fullest support we possibly can, which not every club is the same.

“You always want the best for the football club and that’s how we operate.

“All decisions are made in the best interests of Tonbridge Angels, not for any other reason.”

Tonbridge could go back into some form of private ownership in the future.

The issue was discussed with supporters at Purves’ Share with the Chair meeting a fortnight ago.

“I think there’s an understanding now that we need investment and the board are exploring private ownership and what that might look like,” she said.

“I feel everybody knows we need investment if we’re to be able to compete in the league properly but also the landscape has changed a lot post-Covid.

“There are a lot of clubs spending a lot of money and we realise that we do need investment if we don’t want to go backwards, and we have the support of the fans.

“We’d like to see some level of supporter ownership maintained.

“What that would look like, at the moment we’re unsure, but we’ve effectively been given a mandate to explore it, which is the most important thing.”