Mark McGhee says he is bringing a “brilliant modern coach” with him to Dundee as he prepares for his first match in charge of the Dark Blues.
Appointed with the former Motherwell and Aberdeen manager was 40-year-old assistant Simon Rusk, who will work alongside existing coach Dave Mackay.
McGhee and Rusk previously worked together – but with roles reversed – at Stockport County, where Rusk took charge after finding success with Brighton U/23s.
Rusk was manager at Stockport, with McGhee his experienced No. 2, as they led the Hatters to a third-place finish in the National League last season.
However, a poor start to this season saw the pair sacked in October, with Stockport in 10th.
Energy
Despite their role reversal, with Rusk now assisting McGhee, the new Dee boss insists there will be no issue between the pair – and revealed the younger man will be doing the majority of the coaching.
“We are good friends and we trust each other,” said McGhee.
“Our egos are equal in the sense that we are not bothered one way or another. The fact that I backed him up when I had 975 or whatever games behind me hopefully says it all.
“Now he has come here and is going to be doing what he loves to do, (with) the licence to coach the team.
“We will discuss what we are doing, we will discuss what we think needs to be done and he will tell me what he’s doing about it.
“He is a brilliant modern coach and the players deserve that younger spirit among them.
“They don’t need me at my age among them – they need that energy.”
Who is Simon Rusk?
A Scotland U/18 international, Rusk spent his playing career in English non-league football.
Injury ended his playing days early and he joined Brighton and Hove Albion as a youth coach in 2012, eventually moving up to U/23 head coach.
There, he led the young Seagulls to the top level of U/23 football, eventually finishing third, helping players like Aaron Connolly and Ben White make the step up into the first-team.
Rusk also worked under Chris Hughton as first-team coach at the Amex.
Then came his first chance as a top team boss with McGhee as his assistant.
Between January and October 2021, Rusk led Stockport to 20 wins from 41 matches, drawing 12 and losing nine.
They finished third last season but were defeated by Hartlepool United in the play-offs. He was sacked in October 2021 with the club in 10th place.
That was despite having won four of his final six matches in charge. His final game was lost 2-1 at home to Barnet – a game in which former Dee loanee Ollie Crankshaw scored for Stockport.
‘Sharp as a razor’
McGhee says Rusk was hard done by when shown the door at Edgeley Park.
He added: “Simon left Brighton, where he had a fantastic, highly-paid job.
“He was doing a wonderful job and was tempted out of it by the promise that he was going to a long-term project that included getting to the Championship within five years.
“They wanted a modern manager and Simon is from the school of Brighton, Man City, that kind of environment and mentality.
“He is sharp as a razor but after nine months we had a couple of dodgy results because of injuries – I don’t care what anybody says, the team that is winning now in Stockport is the team that we wanted out there.
“He wasn’t given the chance to do that but that’s what happens in this game.”
