KELTY Hearts have announced Kevin Thomson as their new manager, days after Barry Ferguson left the newly-promoted side.

The Central Fife outfit won promotion on Sunday afternoon with a 3-1 aggregate win against Brechin City, only for Barry Ferguson to announce that he was leaving.

Ferguson has now been unveiled as the Alloa Athletic manager, and Kelty have left little time to announce the former Rangers and Hibs midfielder as his successor.

It is his first senior management role having been an academy coach at the Ibrox side for the past few years.

Speaking to Kelty Hearts' official website, Thomson said: “This is the perfect fit for me at the correct stage in my management and coaching career, it’s a club that I know well and I am sure we can achieve success together in the years ahead.

"I can’t wait to get started on the challenge ahead in my first managerial job in the SPFL and to get to work with the players and backroom team on the training pitch, I am also really looking forward to meeting the Kelty Hearts supporters and people within the community over the coming weeks and months.”

General Manager, Dean Mckenzie, said: “I’ve known Kevin for a few years now and we have kept in contact about football in general and about the club over that time.

"You can’t help to be impressed with his drive and ambition and we are thrilled he chose Kelty Hearts FC to begin his managerial career and to have one of the best up and coming coaches at our club.

"We have no doubts Kevin will go onto bigger things in his management career and we hope to help him do that by giving our new manager and his team our full backing.”