Former Hibs and Nottingham Forest midfielder Brian Rice has been appointed as assistant manager at Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC in time to help the Scottish Cup holders prepare for tonight’s Europa League tie with Romanian side FC Astra Giurgiu at Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.
Rice, who has been coaching leading Qatar club, Al Khor, replaces another former Hibs’ hero, Russell Latapy who left the club last week to pursue his ambition to become a manager in his own right.
Manager John Hughes told the club website: “This is the third time Brian and I have linked up as he was my assistant at Falkirk and Hibernian so I have a full insight in to the quality of his coaching and I’m delighted he has agreed to join us.”
“Brian is a highly qualified coach and can be a big asset to us as we face the challenge of a new season.”
Rice commented: “I’m very pleased to be working with John Hughes again, as we share an outlook on the game. From Qatar, I watched Caley Thistle’s progress last season and you could see they had the stamp of John’s possession football style.”
“There is real character and togetherness in their dressing room and I am keen to make a positive contribution to drive the team forward.”
Rice scored 12 goals in 98 games for Hibs before Brian Clough paid £175,000 to take him to Nottingham Forest in 1985 for whom he appeared 115 times, scoring 12 goals.
After a loan spell at Stoke City, he joined Falkirk in 1991, scoring 8 times in 101 games before moving to Dunfermline Athletic in 1995 and later having spells at Clyde and Morton before finishing his playing career in 2000, when he was appointed Morton assistant manager under Ian McCall.
He followed McCall to Airdrie and then to Falkirk and when John Hughes came in as manager of The Bairns in 2003, Rice was retained as assistant and they won the First Division and reached the 2009 Scottish Cup final.
When Hughes was appointed Hibernian boss in June 2009, Rice followed him to Easter Road. Now they are together again.
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
