BETTING has been suspended on the next Swindon Town manager with Brighton & Hove Albion Under 23s boss Andrew Crofts the most recent favourite.

Less than 24 hours after Ben Garner's exit to Charlton Athletic was confirmed, BetVictor closed its betting market with Crofts starting at 10-1 and then quickly reducing to evens.

The Brighton academy coach led the Seagulls' U23 side to 10th in the 2021/22 Premier League 2 division one table - but were just seven points off third - and helped them lift the Sussex Senior Cup.

A number of EFL clubs have opted to appoint former U23 bosses in recent months and years, with Forest Green Rovers taking a punt on Rob Edwards following his time at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Salford recently appointed Manchester United U23s head coach Neil Wood as their new manager, Crawley Town opted for Arsenal U23s boss Kevin Betsy, and Lincoln City named Birmingham assistant Mark Kennedy as Michael Appleton’s replacement.

Meanwhile, ex-Aston Villa U23s coach Mark Delaney was another well-fancied name by punters, as was former Stockport County manager Simon Rusk.

Rusk is highly unlikely to be appointed however, as he was only appointed as an England coach last month.

Delaney had coached at Villa since 2008 and been in charge of the development side for the last seven years. The 46-year-old helped a number of young starlets make the breakthrough into the senior team and helped oversee the development of former Swindon loanees Kaine Kesler-Hayden and Louie Barry.

In January 2021, Delaney took charge of the Villa first team for their FA Cup third-round clash against Liverpool, a team which consisted of just U23s and U18 players due to a Covid outbreak.

“Having gained all these experiences I am looking forward to what may lie ahead,” he said following his shock exit in May.

It is important to note that just because the bookies suspended betting, it does not mean that an announcement is imminent.

However, Town owner Clem Morfuni is keen to confirm Garner's replacement sooner rather than later as he is returning to Australia in the coming days.

READ: Mason tops list of former Town men on next manager shortlist.