Former Deal Town player, coach and manager Paul Murray is back at the Charles Ground as part of the struggling club’s new coaching team.

And it hasn’t taken long for the former Charlton, Dover and Margate midfielder to find his way ‘home’.

Murray quit as manager the Southern Counties East League side last May after he was appointed coach at Ramsgate.

Things didn’t work out there and Murray, who runs the Castle Community College football academy, has accepted an offer from new Deal manager Derek Hares to come on board.

Hares stepped down from his role as chairman last week to take over as manager after the club dismissed caretaker boss Dave Johncock and his assistant Paul Egan.

Murray, who has brought coach Steve King with him, said it didn’t take long for him to agree to return.

He said: “I said when I left that I would return in some capacity in the future so when Del (Derek Hares) asked if I would be interested, well, it didn’t take long to say yes.

“I first played for the club when I was 19 and I have so much pride and passion for it. It’s my hometown club and it’s been hard seeing it doing it tough at the moment."

Read the full story in Thursday's Mercury