CHAIRMAN Richard Murray has told Charlton shareholders that the club will pin their faith in a bright young manager from a lower division club if Alan Curbishley leaves in the summer.

As speculation persists that Curbishley is ready to call time on his 15 years in charge at The Valley – irrespective of whether he succeeds Sven Goran Eriksson as England manager – Mr Murray, chairman of the club’s plc, was drawing up a shortlist of potential replacements.

Even Curbishley admitted: "I’m sure Richard has got some names ready, just in case. He must have, it wouldn’t be wise if he didn’t."

Mr Murray declined to comment but there are strong rumours that Colchester’s Phil Parkinson is attracting interest from the Charlton board.

The ambitious 38-year-old former Southampton, Bury and Reading midfielder holds the essential pro-licence to manage in the Premiership after being urged by the Football Association to gain the qualification.

He is in the final year of his contract at Layer Road having taken charge in February 2003. He has been linked with jobs at Derby, Leicester and more recently Ipswich Town.

Middlesbrough’s Steve McClaren, the new favourite for the England job, was expected to join Curbishley, Bolton’s Sam Allardyce and Martin O’Neill for secret interviews before two candidates are selected to go before next month’s FA board meeting.

Curbishley, who has a year remaining on his present Charlton contract, disclosed: "If I do miss out on the England job I’ll have to see what happens. If I’m still at Charlton in the summer, I will have come to a crossroads.

"If I do commit myself to this club it takes me into my 50s and people have been talking about me never having managed big players, never done this and never done that.

"So maybe in the summer I need to have a think about things. I want to get to the summer, sit down with Richard Murray and go through one or two things and see where we are."