Maidstone United have parted company with manager Hakan Hayrettin after a poor first half of the season.

Having lost 4-1 at York City on Saturday afternoon, the board at Maidstone United have decided now is the time to look for a new manager for the National League side.

The Stones sit 23rd in the league after a poor run of form and face a real chance that they could be relegated to the National South come the end of the season.

After dropping into the league’s bottom two, the club have issued the following statement:

“Hakan joined the Stones as Head Coach in January 2019 and took over as manager in March 2020. The highlight of his tenure was last season’s unforgettable championship success, which saw the club return to the top flight of non-league football.

Chief executive Bill Williams said: “We have made the difficult decision to part company with Hakan and his assistant Terry Harris, following the recent run of results.

“These decisions are never easy, and the Board felt the time was right to make this change now – with just under half the season remaining – to give us an opportunity to retain our National League status.

“On behalf of the owners, directors and all staff involved with Maidstone United, we would like to express our thanks to Hak and Terry for all their time, effort and guidance while they’ve been at the club.”

Former club captain George Elokobi will be in caretaker charge of the team, starting with this Sunday’s FA Trophy match away to Notts County.

The club will be working to identify and appoint a new management team as soon as practicable.”