In September 2002, Stimson took over as manager of Grays after the sacking of Craig Edwards, initially as caretaker manager, but after leading the team to its first victory of the season, he was quickly given the job on an ongoing basis [REF].
In the early part of the 2007-08 season, speculation began to mount that Stimson would be approached to take over as manager of a Football League club, with Gillingham, Port Vale and Millwall all alleged to be interested in his services [REF].