WHEN Tom Thorley left Worcester City earlier this month, it would have been easy for the club to fear the worst.

Seeing their talismanic skipper, last season’s player-of-the-year, join league leaders Hednesford Town was a major body blow.

Few questioned Thorley’s decision, not least because he had been fiercely loyal to the club in the summer when he could have moved on, but it raised questions.

Who would be next to go? Would City collapse without Thorley in their midfield engine room? Who would replace him with little money to spend and the team in a relegation battle?

All legitimate concerns, that have so far proved unfounded.

A few eyebrows were raised when Ellis Deeney was shifted to midfield alongside Richard Taundry, a move no doubt made easier by left-back Tyler Weir’s fall-out with Gloucester and subsequent reutrn to the fold.

But, on the evidence to date, it could turn out to be a shrewd move on the part of manager Carl Heeley.

While Deeney has some way to go to win everybody over, he has not looked out of place and is comfortable on the ball.

In Taundry, he also has a former Football League player who takes no prisoners when it comes to making a tackle.

It could also be argued that Thorley, having been City’s most consistent performer in recent seasons, was struggling to replicate the standard fans had come to expect from him.

Heeley has been impressed with the duo’s efforts and even went as far to say that the team have not missed Thorley’s presence.

The City boss said: “I think it is testament to Ellis and Richard is how many players, myself, supporters and the media have mentioned Tom Thorley. That’s the biggest compliment I can pay to them.

“Tom’s a great player and we didn’t want to lose him but I don’t think we have missed him and I think that’s testament to the boys who have gone in there and stepped up to the plate.

“Ellis is not playing out of position, we know he’s comfortable in the middle and we knew he wouldn’t let us down.

“Richard has got a great pedigree, the best in our side. I think he was short of match fitness but now I think we’re starting to see why he played 150-plus games in League One.

“It takes time to adjust to the tempo and match fitness but I think he’s getting there now and he’s a great asset.”

Heeley continued: “It is a partnership with a nice right-foot, left-foot balance in the middle of the park. They’re competitive and win a tackle and in this league you have to win your tackles.

“They are both very comfortable on the ball and I think the two of them worked incredibly hard on Tuesday. They are boys you want on your team when you’re in a scrap.”