Mark Senior can now finally call himself the new Eccleshill boss because, despite being appointed first-team manager before Christmas, he had to wait until Tuesday to take charge of his first game.

A series of postponements delayed the start of his tenure for over a month but the former Eagles and Thackley midfielder enjoyed his dugout debut.

Senior oversaw a winning start – a rare victory as United had won just one of their previous 14 league fixtures this term and exited all the cup competitions at the first hurdle.

It whetted the appetite of Senior, who said: “It was nice to win my first real game but we had beaten Huddersfield University 4-0 in a friendly the week before. I hope that leads to a long-standing link with the Uni and it benefits both parties in the future.

“I’m looking forward to this job and hope we can lift the club back to the standing it enjoyed just a few years ago. I was part of the team that reached the last 16 of the FA Trophy not too long ago.

“I was only about 18 or so at the time and the club was well run then. The years since have seen a dip in the club’s fortunes on and off the pitch. That is very unfortunate for everyone involved at Eccleshill and depressing for me on a personal level.

“People like Derek Greenwood and Lewis Dixon were involved when I was a player here and they were very influential. They both passed away and there were no candidates to replace them who could hold a candle to them.

“I will try to bring a good standard of football to the club and I know there are people working behind the scenes to raise the money necessary to keep the club afloat at first and then take it forward again.”

Meanwhile, Eccleshill’s reserves completed a Lancashire League double over Harrogate Railway with a 3-1 victory. The scorers were Jamil Joseph, Ryan Wood and Joe Penn.

The under-18s beat Churwell Lions 2-1 in the Huddersfield Junior League with goals from Duran Thompson and Adam Medley.