Sheffield Wednesday manager Dave Jones has made a key addition to his backroom staff with the appointment of coach Stuart Gray.
Gray brings a wealth of experience to Hillsborough having enjoyed a coaching career of almost two decades.
The 52-year-old’s stint on the other side of the white line began back in 1994 upon his retirement from his playing days.
Having hung up his boots after representing Nottingham Forest, Bolton, Barnsley, Aston Villa and Southampton, Gray joined the coaching staff at The Dell before moving on to Wolves as reserve team manager.
Gray returned to Southampton in 1997 as reserve team coach under Jones, who was then at the Saints helm.
The Yorkshireman was promoted to first team coach in 1998 and, after a spell as caretaker manager in 2001, took up the position on a permanent basis as the club moved to their new ground of St Mary’s.
Gray then enjoyed fruitful spells coaching the first teams of Aston Villa and Crystal Palace before linking up once again with Jones as assistant manager at Wolves.
After a short spell as caretaker at Molineux in 2004, Gray’s next project arrived in 2007 when he took up the vacant managerial position at Northampton Town, where he remained until 2009.
In 2010, Gray became first team coach at then Premier League side Burnley and took the reins as caretaker following the departure of former Owls boss Brian Laws in December of the same year.
Gray took his coaching experience to Portsmouth last season and now links up with Jones once more at Hillsborough.
The Wednesday boss said: “I’ve brought Stuart in because he’s an older head than the coaches I have, he has a vast amount of experience.
“He’ll become part of the coaching team and everybody at the club will benefit from his experience and knowledge.
“I have worked with Stuart before for around seven years and that played a big part in my decision to bring him to the club.
“It underlines my philosophy of never standing still and always looking to build.
“I would like to welcome Stuart to Sheffield Wednesday.”