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Chris Lynch believes his Sittingbourne experience shows he’s better-suited to professional football.
Lynch quit the Brickies on Wednesday after losing nine successive games in Isthmian South East, leaving them 16th in the table.
But the Uefa-qualified coach remains highly ambitious, having spoken previously of his desire to reach the Football League.
He tried to bring an ultra-professional approach to Sittingbourne and while he’s convinced that was right, it hasn’t produced the results he’d hoped for.
Lynch, who was encouraged to take up coaching by former England manager Graham Taylor, said: “If you’re professional, really professional, why can’t that work in non-league?
“Things are very different and maybe not everyone else will be able to operate at that level but I do believe there’s a place for it.
“It requires a lot of effort from a lot of people and, don’t forget, a lot of people are volunteers in non-league.
“It’s not a full-time job, even though you treat it like one, which is what I was doing, without getting paid a penny.
“You get to a point where your expectations are so high that some people just can’t operate at that level, they can’t be fulfilled, so it shows me really that my place is in the pro game.
“I think the experience at this level is something that’s required, though.
“You definitely need to see what it’s like at these levels with all the problems that occur, it prepares you for later on.
“The experience is invaluable and that will help me in my quest to move forwards and upwards because there’s so many challenges.”
Lynch accepts potential employers will question his record at the end of his Sittingbourne reign but retains faith in his ability and is confident clubs won’t be put off.
“I’m sure what people will recognise is I brought a club round from relegation fodder the previous season to challenging in the play-offs in mid-January this year,” said Lynch.
“I think that speaks volumes of the work we’ve done and I think it’s quite obvious where it’s gone wrong and that is we’ve lost big players to major injuries and then because we can’t contract players, we’ve lost other key players to clubs that can contract them.
“My answer is quite clear: had we not lost those players, we’d be in the play-offs now.
“The recruitment was right all along, it was the right project, the right way of doing things, it was proven with the results and we had some good times.
“But, like I said, there’s so much against you at this level.
“That’s a question I’ll no doubt be asked and that’s the answer I’ll be giving because that’s the truth, that’s how it is.”
Lynch takes full responsibility for Sittingbourne’s slide down the table, having been in play-off contention at the start of the year.
By resigning, he says he’s put the Brickies first, just as he did when he decided to stay on in January after taking a second job in non-league in the form of a recruitment role at Dover.
“I could have gone when the Dover job came up and I’d have left them in the play-offs,” said Lynch.
“I’d have gone out looking like a hero and anyone else who came in would have had an impossible job to deal with.
“I had long chats with the board at the time. They wanted me to stay, I was happy to stay, I wanted to see the project out.
“The board have been fantastic but I’ve made this decision to resign because, ultimately, results for the last 10 games haven’t been good.
“It’s the right time for someone new to come in and try and put their mark on things.
“When a change happens you can almost guarantee a couple of results straight away.
“I put the club before my ambitions. I could have gone when I took the Dover job.
"I didn’t, I stayed, and now it’s another selfless decision to say, right, we need something different, it’s not currently working.
“I had no pressure from the board at all. It was quite clear, we had many conversations, they weren’t looking to make a change at all.”
Assistant manager Darren Blackburn will be in charge for the last nine games - on Lynch’s recommendation - with Sittingbourne hosting Chichester on Saturday.
Lynch said: “I brought Darren in for a reason, he’s been a good No.2, he’s reliable, he’s supported everything I’ve put out and he knows the project that I set in place.
“His approach might be slightly different but, ultimately, we both have the same mindset and that’s to win games.
“I’m glad the board have accepted that recommendation from me and put him in for the last nine games.
“It’s good for him, it’s a positive move from the club and now they just need to get behind him and give him their full support.”
