WALTHAM ABBEY captain Lee White hopes new caretaker manager Glen Alzapiedi will be named as the permanent successor to Tony Tillbrook, who left the club by mutual consent last week.

Former Harlow Town boss Alzapiedi has stepped in to fill the void left by Tillbrook and coach Andy Purcell until a full-time replacement has been found.

He has made an immediate impact on the Abbotts, masterminding the team’s first win in the Ryman Premier Division with a 2-1 defeat of Bognor Regis Town on Saturday.

Abbey then followed that result up with an encouraging 1-1 draw at home to Harrow Borough on Monday.

And, after a taste of Alzapiedi’s methods, White is now convinced that he is the right man to take the club forward after the ‘shock’ of Tillbrook’s departure.

“I hope he is (named as manager) permanently,” said the defender. “I’ve enjoyed working with him so far. I know him from his time with Ware. He’s always been a good manager and he’s played at a high level.

“It was a shock to see him (Tillbrook) go so early in the season, but it’s just one of those things.

“We were all introduced to Glen last Tuesday and he had some input into the Billericay game, but Saturday was his first game in charge and that result has given us a big confidence boost.”

Last season’s top scorer Billy Holland continued his strong start to the season with his third goal in six games against Town.

The striker put the visitors ahead in the 37th minute and the Abbotts held on to their lead until the dying minutes, when the home side equalised.

However, not to be denied, star striker Harry Elmes made amends for several missed opportunities when he popped up with the winner just seconds later to earn his side their first victory of the campaign.

The team carried momentum from that win into Monday’s clash with Harrow, when a goal from midfielder James Elmes was enough to secure a point and lift them up to 18th after their first six games.

White now hopes that the team can kick on after a difficult start to the season. “We’ve had some tough opening fixtures but there’s not been much in the games. We’ve only lost by the odd goal.

“We’ll take four points over the Bank Holiday and hopefully this can snowball into a good run now.”