GARY ROWETT has heaped praise on Callum Davidson following his decision to become St Johnstone's new manager.

Former Scotland international Davidson worked as assistant to Rowett at Stoke City, before the pair moved on to Millwall.

But after Tommy Wright left his position as Saints boss at the start of May, Davidson had his heart set on a move back to a club that means so much to him.

The 43-year-old started and finished his career with the Perth club and worked as assistant to Wright for five years before he headed south to link-up with Rowett.

Speaking about Davidson's appointment, Rowett said: “Callum being asked to do the job is a compliment to the work he has done with us here.

"As a team, we have been successful. We want people with ambition, who want to further their careers, to be better at their jobs.

“The flip side is that they get offers they want to pursue. He got the offer probably quicker than he thought.

"I said ‘If it is something you really want to do, we will try to help.’ The club does not stand in the way of people who want to progress – I do not think that is right, to make it hard for someone to take their chance.

“He has been away from his family for two years – so I don’t think his wife Lorna and their two girls would have thanked us if we had stopped him.

“He goes with our best wishes. He will be a big miss because he has been an integral part of what we are doing.

"The timing is not fantastic. But it is good there will be a minimum of disruption before Saturday.”