Gillingham boss Justin Edinburgh has appointed David Kerslake as his new no.2.

Edinburgh was forced to look for a new assistant following Andy Hessenthaler’s decision last week to join Leyton Orient, to work under Ian Hendon.

The Gillingham manager, a close friend of Kerslake, was quick to narrow his short-list down to two targets.

Kerslake’s playing career included spells at QPR, Swindon, Leeds United and Tottenham.

He began his coaching career at Nottingham Forest and the 49-year-old then had a stint at Watford, before assisting Malky Mackay at Cardiff City.

Mackay’s sacking left him briefly in charge of the Bluebirds, along with Joe McBride, but were eventually replaced by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Kerslake has recently been working for Tottenham’s foundation programme while seeking a full-time role.

His appointment completes Edinburgh’s backroom team. Gills earlier confirmed the appointment of Jason Brown as goalkeeper coach.

Wayne Hatswell, meanwhile, has been appointed under-18 coach.

Edinburgh said: “I’m really pleased David has agreed to join us. We were team-mates at Tottenham and he’s a very experienced coach who has worked at some very big football clubs.

“Following Andy’s departure last week I wanted to get the right candidate for this role as soon as possible and I thank the chairman for getting everything sorted so quickly.”