Craig Brewster made his return to Tannadice official today by rubber-stamping a three and a half year contract, which will keep him as manager of Dundee United until the summer of 2009. He has also registered as a player.
Brewster has chosen as his coaching staff as - Assistant Manager Malcolm Thomson, Coach Tony Docherty, Youth Coach Stevie Campbell and Fitness Coach Peter Davidson. Billy Dodds has been let go with immediate effect, and others, such as Dave Bowman, have yet to hear their fate, as no announcement can be made at the current time. It is the first time Billy Dodds has been outside of football for 21 years.
Brewster said at the press conference today:
“Everyone knows what this Club means to me and I see this job as both an opportunity and a challenge. It’s fair to say that I didn’t expect to be leaving my former club this early but sometimes circumstances change and you have to be able to think and react accordingly. This sort of opportunity might never come around for me again and while I know that there will be a weight of expectation, I am confident in my own ability. However, I am making no rash promises and setting no specific targets. A lot has been said about the team under performing and while I’ve seen United play really well, the truth is league positions don’t lie. We need to be more consistent and fans might need to be a little patient.”
Eddie Thompson:
"We are absolutely delighted to welcome Craig Brewster back to Tannadice. Like all Dundee United supporters, we have kept a keen eye on Craig's career since leaving the club and when it became apparent that we had to consider the possibility of changing managers, Craig came into immediate consideration.
"While there are no guarantees in football, we are confident that Craig is the man to take Dundee United forward in the long term."
Eddie also made specific mention of Billy Dodds’ contribution.
“Dundee United would like to thank Billy Dodds for all of his efforts on behalf of the club.
"His departure is particularly difficult for me as I have known him personally for a long time, but it is clearly up to the manager to decide his own team.