Chester FC chairman David Harrington-Wright has insisted that the appointment of Bernard Morley and Anthony Johnson as joint managers has been done within the confines of the budget.

The Blues pulled off somewhat of a coup on Tuesday by ending their lengthy search for a new manager by hiring the duo who last month won the league that Chester are to play in next season.

Morley and Johnson lead Salford City to the National League North title in April - their third promotion in four years - but surprisingly left the Ammies last week citing ‘irreconcilable differences’.

At Salford, owned by Manchester United legends Gary Neville, Phil Neville, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, Morley and Johnson had a sizeable budget to achieve success, but their track record of triumph at Ramsbottom United on meagre resources before that was enough to convince the City Fans United board that the duo could work similar magic on a tight budget at Chester next season.

But Harrington-Wright says that while the duo, who were front and centre of the BBC documentary on Salford City ‘Class of ‘92: Out of Their League’, are a high profile choice, they have not seen the club stretch beyond their means.

“There has been no special treatment of Bernard and Anthony. They fall within the same budget that we had at the start of the search for a manager and nothing has changed,” said the Chester chairman.

Bernard Morley and Anthony Johnson celebrate on the pitch after winning the National League North championship

“The money that people may have thought Salford had and how much they were on are some way away from the reality. They have taken a pay cut to come here but we have not stretched ourselves to get this done.

“Bernard and Anthony know the budget, they know the limitations and they still believe they can make a success of it. What they have been offered and the budget that they must work with is no different to what we had discussed with other candidates through the process.”

Wealthy entrepreneur Stuart Murphy was last week revealed as the mystery man who wishes to donate a substantial amount to the Blues.

And while at a press conference at his unveiling, Murphy, who hopes to conclude the deal to bequeath Chester funds by the end of the month, stated his hope for the club to challenge for promotion next season, his potential involvement has not had any bearing on the deal to appoint Morley and Johnson.

“We have not concluded the plans with Stuart Murphy yet and the two things are not linked,” said Harrington-Wright.

Stuart Murphy being unveiled as the mystery benefactor who has pledged to donate money to Chester FC. Picture shows Stuart Murphy in the centre in the white shirt, with Chester FC chairman David Harrington-Wright on the far left and non-executive director Richard Lynes second from left.

“This isn’t a case of us suddenly becoming rich and spending money we don’t have, Bernard and Anthony are working within the budget that we had planned for at the end of the season. Nothing has changed in that respect. Financial prudence remains at the forefront of what we do, we owe that to the fans.

“We are delighted to have Bernard and Anthony on board and we truly believe they give us the best chance to move forward in a positive fashion and help us get back to where we want to be.

“They are passionate and they have an excellent track record of success, which is something that they have done both with and without money.

“Hopefully we will see season ticket sales start to gather pace and we have plenty to be excited about over the coming weeks and months.

“We’ve been through a tough time and there have been mistakes made and we acknowledge that and we are doing our best to put things right. We are in a better position than we were and we hope that we can get that feel-good factor back at Chester Football Club. It’s what we all want to see, after all.”