Kings Langley shrugged off the managerial departures of Paul Hughes and Ritchie Hanlon to turn in a totally committed, non-stop performance under caretaker manager Paul Hobbs and earn a deserved 2-0 victory against Dorchester Town.

Gary Connolly was reinstated as skipper in a back four and Jack Pattison made his 100th appearance in defensive midfield alongside Dean Hitchcock, while Immanuelson Duku dropped back to an attacking midfield role behind Lewis Toomey.

It was a nervous start to a new era as Town’s Mario Mateus found himself face-to-face with Danny Boness, but the Kings goalkeeper stood tall to block the shot and urged on by a good sized crowd, his teammates soon began to find their rhythm.

Dorchester still looked lively in attack and a Lewis Morgan shot was only just wide, but Kings took the lead on 18 minutes with a classic counter-attacking move.

Toomey pulled out to the right wing, received a forward pass and made a run at pace towards the flag, before cutting in and delivering a low cross from the side of the box that was inch perfect for Jack Waldren at the far post to beat Shane Murphy from close range.

Kings’ tails were up now and Toomey hit the bar with a ferocious shot from 18 yards, but as half-time beckoned they established the buffer they so desperately needed.

Pattison won the ball in midfield, fed Duku and his through ball put Toomey on path to goal. The striker’s chip over Murphy was judged to perfection and his side were 2-0 up, much to the vocal delight of the junior fans behind the goal and a large part of the ground in general.

The second half was to be a different story as Dorchester upped the pressure in a bid to get back in the game and Kings were to lose the strike threat of Toomey as he succumbed to injury. However, the back line of Emmanuel Folarin, Gary Connolly, Jorell Johnson and Connor Toomey soaked up the attacks, throwing themselves into selfless blocks when necessary, while Pattison and Hitchcock were outstanding in front of them.

Town’s opportunities became fewer and Kings were comfortable in running down the clock, before the final whistle gave relief to some tired limbs as the home support sounded its appreciation of a team that had almost run itself into the ground to ensure an adrenaline-fuelled victory for the new manager.

Kings Langley: Boness; Folarin, C Toomey, Connolly (Calvin 85), Johnson, Pattison, Ward, Hitchcock, L Tooomey (Gallagher 70), Duku (Plowright 65), Waldren.