Mark Boyd was in the hot seat for Carlisle City on Saturday for their opening Northern League clash at home to Shildon.
The former Carlisle United and Barrow midfielder has joined City as assistant manager to Dan Kirkup, who is starting his second season in charge.
But a family holiday keeps Kirkup out of the firing line for the first three matches, so Boyd has an early promotion to take charge in his absence.
He announced himself well satisfied with the opening 0-0 draw with one of the title favourites and thought they might have even grabbed all the points.
He’s now looking forward to Tuesday’s follow-up league clash, also at home, to Northallerton.
He will have Sam Smith and Liam Lightfoot both back in the mix after they missed the Shildon game.
But Tom Mahone is doubtful after going over on his ankle and it will depend how it feels after three days rest.
You can hear his view on the game below:
