Huddersfield boss Grant 'ready' for managerial role

Lee Grant spent the past three seasons assisting Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna

New Huddersfield Town manager Lee Grant has said his lack of experience will not be a barrier to being successful.

The 42-year-old former Sheffield Wednesday, Burnley and Derby County goalkeeper was appointed as the League One side's boss on a three-year deal on Wednesday.

This is his first role in management after spending the past three seasons on Kieran McKenna's staff at Ipswich Town.

"There are no guarantees, and I think anyone who has been in the game long enough has seen the full raft of decision-making processes and the wide-ranging results of those decisions," Grant told BBC Radio Leeds.

"If you look at League One over the course of the last three or four years and you take John Mousinho, McKenna, Steven Schumacher, Chris Davies... the list goes on.

"What I'm pleased about is Huddersfield Town and me have a huge alignment of what we think has got a really good chance of working for us this year."

He added: "It came about really quickly. I've been in a wonderful job for three years and enjoyed my time at Ipswich immensely.

"The process caught me a little bit off guard but once it began it was really clear to me that there was one decision to be made. I'm ready to rock and roll."

In the past three seasons Mousinho, McKenna, Schumacher and Davies have all led teams to promotion from League One in their first roles in management.

Grant joins Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo and Bromley manager Andy Woodman as the only managers in the top four tiers to have played professionally as a goalkeeper.

He said his appointment as the Terriers boss is the culmination of over 10 years of work.

"To be successful in any walk of life it's work, there are no shortcuts or secret sauce.

"The work I have been doing has been ongoing for well over a decade now.

"Yes, I was at Manchester United as a player [from 2018 to 2022] but in reality that was a player-coach role.

"I spent more time in the office understanding, listening and learning to really top people, and that leads to me being in this seat today."

Grant given 'huge responsibility'

The West Yorkshire side were relegated from the Championship in the 2023-24 season and hopes had been high for an immediate return to the second tier.

However, head coach Michael Duff was sacked in March after 10 months in charge and the club ultimately laboured to a 10th-placed finish under caretaker Jon Worthington.

Sporting director Mark Cartwright was also sacked before the end of the season by owner Kevin Nagle as Town ended the season with six successive defeats.

With no director of football in place, Grant, who helped Ipswich go from League One to the Premier League in successive seasons, has now been appointed manager rather than head coach and said he will have total control of recruitment.

"The level of responsibility I have been given is huge. I'm the manager of the football club and I'm really excited about that.

"From this day forward the players you see coming through the door are ones that I want and want to be here and am excited to work with.

"That means the values they need to share and have are ones that I want. I think the qualities that we are going to have and display are ones that Huddersfield Town really need.

"We want players who can work really hard first and foremost and have a desire and hunger to be here for the right reasons. They're all the things we're looking to recruit and demand from the boys who are here as well."