Stockport County supporters may have had something of a surprise on Sunday evening when it was announced that their former manager, Simon Rusk, would be taking interim charge of Premier League Southampton.
The Saints sacked Russell Martin after an embarrassing 5-0 defeat at home to Tottenham where they were five goals down before half-time, leaving them rock bottom of the Premier League with just five points from 16 games and nine points from safety.
While Martin's departure has been a long time coming and won't surprise anyone, his interim replacement, Rusk, will be an unknown quantity to most people, not Stockport County supporters though.
Rusk has been in charge of Southampton's U21 side since the summer, so he hasn't been at St Mary's long himself, but his only previous senior Head Coach role saw him take charge of the Hatters in 2021, lasting just 10 months at Edgeley Park, making it a surprise that he'll be managing in the Premier League.
Stockport County supporters will be shocked that Simon Rusk is managing in the Premier League
Inside Edgeley Park
Rusk was appointed Stockport County manager in January 2021 following Jim Gannon's exit, and he was tasked with leading the Hatters out of the National League and into the EFL.
The 42-year-old left his role as Brighton's U23 coach to make the move to Edgeley Park, and while he helped lead the Hatters to the play-offs in 2021, he was sacked a couple of months later in October, with the club in 10th, and replaced by Dave Challinor who led them to the title that season.
It's fair to say that Stockport supporters would never have expected Rusk to be a Premier League manager just over three years later, especially as the 10 months in charge of the Hatters was his only taste of leading a senior team.
Of course, Rusk is only the Saints' interim manager and the chances of him being given the job on a full-time basis look incredibly slim, but he'll still be a Premier League manager for a couple of games, and that will surprise Stockport supporters who probably don't have fond memories of his time in charge.
|Simon Rusk's managerial career|
|Team|Seasons|
|---|
|Brighton U23's|2015-21|
|Stockport County|2021|
|Dundee (Assistant)|2022|
|England U19's|2022-23|
|Southampton U21's|2024-|
Rusk had a spell as Dundee's assistant manager after leaving Stockport, before a spell with England U19's which culminated in him being appointed Southampton U21's manager this summer.
His young Saints side currently sit 16th out of 26 teams in Premier League 2, and while results aren't everything at U21 level, it's perhaps not ideal for someone who's set to lead a Premier League side.
Liverpool away on Wednesday in the EFL Cup will be a baptism of fire for Rusk, and one that Stockport supporters wouldn't have seen coming.
Southampton interim role could put Simon Rusk in the shop window
Rusk has never managed in the EFL, and when he takes charge of the Saints in the Premier League against Fulham on the weekend, it will mean that he's managed in both the National League and the Premier League, but not the EFL - a unique feat.
If Southampton do well under Rusk, it could put him in the shop window for an EFL job, and he should see this as an opportunity to prove his worth as a senior manager after previously impressing at age-grade level.
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Challinor wasn't best pleased with his side's showing in Hertfordshire.
Stockport supporters could be watching Southampton with interest in the coming weeks to see how Rusk fares, and it's a strange situation to see a manager who was sacked in the National League leading a side in the Premier League just three years later.
Rusk has nothing to lose during his spell as Southampton's interim boss, but if he impresses, he could well land himself an EFL job in the future, and this could be the making of the former Stockport boss.