Club captain Gareth Ainsworth will be kept on as a player/coach by new manager Iain Dowie.

Ainsworth is the club’s longest serving player along with Martin Rowlands and as well as playing and captaining the club last season he was heavily involved with the coaching and management side of things - regularly appearing on the touchline with orders for his team mates.

That role seemed to stem from Luigi De Canio’s problems mastering the English language and it was unclear whether Gareth would continue once the Italian had departed. Today new manager Iain Dowie has ended any doubt by naming Ainsworth among his new look coaching set up.

Ainsworth told the club’s official website: “I'm over the moon about it. I had a taste of it last year and this is another exciting opportunity for me - another step forward in terms of my long-term aspirations. I've still got plenty to offer as a player, but I'm delighted that I've been given the chance to learn from Iain and Tim, who I have huge respect for.”

Personally I’ll be interested to see how the arrangement works. Ainsworth, who has spent his summer so far working towards UEFA coaching badges, was very involved on a matchday regularly standing on the touchline and instructing the players. That worked well last season with Luigi De Canio unable to communicate as well but with Dowie very much a hands on manager as well I’ll be interested to see if Gareth has to take a bit more of a back seat. One thing is for sure, we’re not short of strong characters in the dressing room and woe betide any player going in to face Dowie, Flowers and Ainsworth if they haven’t given 100%. Ainsworth is of course the man who once tried to “run off” a spiral fracture of his leg.

I’m sure everybody would join me in wishing Gareth congratulations and good luck in his coaching at QPR, he’s just the kind of person you need around your club.

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