Brown appointed interim Dundee boss

Dundee have appointed former player John Brown as their interim manager until the end of the season.

Brown replaces Barry Smith, who was sacked on Wednesday with the club 15 points adrift at the bottom of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League.

The club announced the news with a statement on their official website.

It read: "Having been inundated by high calibre candidates over the last few days, one man stood out as perfect for the position of interim manager of Dundee FC.

"John Brown is a man with real heritage and history at Dundee FC and when at Dens Park in his time as a player, he was an real inspiration, a fans favourite and scored some vital goals and he has never lost his feelings for the club."

Brown is a surprise appointment given his lack of recent managerial experience.

The former Rangers defender's only managerial job, at Clyde, ended in November 2009 after less than two years in the post.

But he had two coaching spells with Rangers and left his role as a scout when Charles Green took control at Ibrox in June. Brown then launched a vociferous attempt to lead a fans' buyout of Green's consortium.

Dundee hope Brown, who spent four years at Dens Park as a player, can prove to be the "inspirational leader" he was when helping Rangers to six league titles.

Although relegation looks a near certainty, Dundee have a huge match a week on Sunday when they face city rivals United in the William Hill Scottish Cup quarter-finals.