Gary Caldwell back in dugout as former Hibs assistant is appointed manager of English side

Gary Caldwell is back in football following his dismissal as Hibs assistant manager four months ago after being appointed as the new manager of English League One side Exeter City.

The former Hibs, Celtic and Scotland defender was most recently assistant to Shaun Maloney at Easter Road but was sacked along with the manager in April after four ill-fated months at Easter Road and HTC. He previously led Wigan Athletic to promotion to the Championship in 2016 and has also had spells in charge of Partick Thistle and Chesterfield.

The 40-year-old takes over Exeter following the departure of Matt Taylor, who left to take charge of Rotherham United earlier this month after steering the club to automatic promotion last season. The Grecians are currently eighth in League One, three points off the play-off places.

“The development aspect of the club, the challenge of League One again was really appealing,” Caldwell told BBC South West. “Right from the start I've been very excited by this football club and the whole interview process was extremely professional, and now I'm just really eager to meet the players and get started.”

He added: “We have to acknowledge the job that Matt Taylor did here, a fantastic job over a number of years. I have to try and build on that and take the good work that has been done and take that forward and move forward. This club is always about development and evolving and growing, and it's no different now. We have to take it forward and see where it takes us this season and beyond.”

The appointment is Caldwell’s fourth managerial role, having guided Wigan to the League One title in 2016 before less successful spells in charge of Chesterfield, where he suffered relegation, and Partick, who dismissed him while second bottom of the Scottish Championship. He has also previously held the position of interim manager of Newcastle United's U23s team.

Supporters' Trust chairman Nick Hawker and club president Julian Tagg in a joint statement: “The club is in a strong position, having been promoted to League One and made a great start to the campaign, which sees us in eighth position in the table. Gary brings a great deal of experience to our club and we're excited and optimistic for the future. ”