CHAIRMAN Stewart Donald says he “would be surprised” if Eastleigh do not have a new manager in place for Saturday's Vanarama National League trip to Wrexham.

The Spitfires intend to act quickly after relieving Chris Todd of his duties on Wednesday.

Ex-Saints boss and local resident Nigel Adkins, out of work since parting company with Sheffield United in May, has been the subject of much speculation on social media.

And there has even been talk among fans of Richard Hill, the man Todd replaced last September, making a surprise return to the Silverlake.

Club officials were hard at work yesterday trying to pin down a replacement.

It is likely they will plump for someone with more experience than 34-year-old Todd, who was in his first managerial post.

Donald said “It’s one of those things where we’re demanding almost an instant return.

“My gut instinct is that it’s quite a big job and we may well need a more experienced manager.”

So focused were the Spitfires on getting a short-list of candidates rapidly drawn up, that they did not bother advertising the post.

“We’ve identified two or three we’d like to talk to and see if we can sell them the dream of Eastleigh,” said Donald. “They’ve got to want to come for the right reasons.

“If they come and see us, we’re pretty confident we can sell them our vision."

Ironically Welshman Todd’s first game after succeeding Hill in a caretaker capacity was away to Wrexham – and the Spitfires won 3-2.

Assistant boss Ben Strevens, who scored late in that game, will take charge on Saturday if a new manager is not appointed in time.