Ex-Sunderland man appointed by Stewart Donald as manager of Eastleigh in non-league

Former Sunderland goalkeeper Kelvin Davis has taken the job as manager of non-league club Eastleigh.

The Spitfires are owned by former Sunderland owner Stewart Donald, who officially left Sunderland in May 2023 after Kryil Louis-Dreyfus and Juan Sartori bought out his remaining shares.

The following month, Donald agreed to purchase a controlling stake in non-league club Eastleigh, five years after he had sold the club initially. Sunderland's former owner now has no association with the Wearsiders anymore.

However, former Sunderland goalkeeper Davis, 47, has replaced Richard Hill, who departed the Spitfires by mutual consent on Saturday.

Hill was involved at Sunderland during Donald's time on Wearside as head of football operations during one of the worst periods in the club's history as the Black Cats tried and failed to pull themselves out of League One.

Davis has been searching for work since he was sacked as an assistant in the summer of 2022 at his former club Southampton, a post he held for four and a half years. Davis joined Sunderland in June 2005 for a fee of £1.25 million and was part of the team that were relegated from the Premier League.

Davis will be joined at Eastleigh by former Saints defender Danny Butterfield, who will take the role of assistant manager at the club. Eastleigh are 15th in the National League and without a win in 11 in all competitions following a 3-0 defeat at Ebbsfleet United last time out.