Guy Whittingham appointed Crawley Town first-team coach

Former Portsmouth manager Guy Whittingham has been appointed first-team coach at League One Crawley Town.

The 49-year-old was sacked by Pompey last month and replaced by Richie Barker, who was dismissed by Crawley two days after Whittingham's departure.

Whittingham worked under new Red Devils boss John Gregory when he was a player at Portsmouth after being persuaded to leave the Army.

"One of the attractions was working with [Gregory]," Whittingham said.

"I guess I owe my professional career to him because he paid £450 to buy me out of the Army all those years ago.

"A lot has happened since then but I was keen to come in and work with John again. Obviously I have had my own experience of management so I know what it's like but it's great to be here."

Former Aston Villa and Sheffield Wednesday striker Whittingham took charge of Pompey on a temporary basis in November 2012 following the departure of Michael Appleton to Blackpool, but, after being handed the job permanently in April, struggled for results and left the the club 18th in League Two in November.

"Being a manager is a huge responsibility so he won't have that and he can focus on making some good players even better," boss Gregory said.

"In particular, he will be working with our strikers. We have a problem scoring goals and I want him to transfer his knowledge onto our forwards in particular."

The club have also confirmed that Paul Hayes will not be offered a contract after the striker was taken on trial.