Motherwell assistant manager Brian Kerr reckons he is at a special club and he won't be the last Fir Park favourite to find a way back to ML1.
The 40-year-old is Steven Hammell's right-hand man at the Scottish Premiership side after the pair were thrust from the club's academy setup straight into the top jobs for the first team at the end of July.
Graham Alexander's departure by 'mutual consent' in the aftermath of an embarrassing Europa Conference League qualifying round exit to Sligo Rovers saw club hall of famer Hammell and Kerr given the reins on an interim basis, before convincing the Fir Park hierarchy they were the men to take the club forward permanently.
While it is Hammell's first managerial job, Kerr brings experience to the partnership from spells in charge of League Two Albion Rovers and Lowland League East Kilbride, as well being assistant at Partick Thistle to Gary Caldwell during an ill-fated spell in Maryhill.
But the duo both know Motherwell inside out and have spent the past few years working beneath the first team to bring through the next generation of Motherwell youngsters looking to follow in the footsteps of James McFadden and David Turnbull.
Kerr returned to Fir Park in November 2019, having spent three years in claret and amber between 2004-2007, to take on the role of under-18s coach and now finds himself charged with helping Hammell lead their push in the Premiership.
It certainly wasn't something Kerr saw coming and he and Hammell had to get to work fast in the transfer window, which included pulling off an 11th hour signing coup when they brought another Fir Park hero back to the club in Louis Moult.
But as he caught breath to reflect on a "crazy" few weeks, the former midfielder told Lanarkshire Live Sport there is something about the Steelmen that keeps former players coming back.
He said: "It's a special club and only when you've been there do you realise how special it is and how much the club means to the people involved in it.
"We've just got Louis Moult back, but there's loads of names like Scott McDonald, James McFadden, Keith Lasley and even Stevie [Hammell].
"They all went away and came back. It just seems to be the way.
"I didn't envisage I'd be here [as assistant manager] when I was playing, but I'm sure if somebody had said it at the time I'm sure I would have liked the sound of it.
"Any player that has played at Motherwell always seems to find a way back."
Since the pair took over, there have been clear signs of improvement in performances and results.
Motherwell have taken three wins from six games in the league under their stewardship and find themselves joint-third on points in the table, although fifth on goal difference from Aberdeen and Sunday's opponents Hearts. A Premier Sports Cup quarter-final berth and a tie with Celtic next month has also been secured after knocking out Inverness.
It was always going to be a work in progress, but Kerr is pleased with how quickly they have gotten to grips with the task at hand and praised those behind the scenes for helping that transition go smoothly.
He added: "It has been a bit of a whirlwind, crazy few weeks for us.
"I started the season as the head of development, looking after the reserve team and 18s, so this was certainly something Stevie and I didn't see coming, especially so early in the season.
"It was never in our minds we would be doing this but when the decision was made and we were asked to stand in interim charge, we wanted to make sure we gave a good account of ourselves but, most importantly, we wanted to make sure the boys were back on the pitch enjoying themselves.
"And I think we've managed to do that over the last few weeks.
"We knew the transfer window deadline was coming up but first and foremost we wanted to win games on the pitch.
"While doing that we wanted to do as much as we could off it as well so it has been a really busy time.
"Things are settling down now and we've got brilliant staff in place, from sports scientists to analysts.
"It was a real team effort from everybody to make sure those first few weeks were as straightforward for us as possible to make it a successful period."
Motherwell's last outing came against Dundee United on September 3 and proved they are a team capable of creating chances, as they passed up a hatful of opportunities in a 0-0 stalemate.
The summer window has brought in attacking threats like Moult - still to make his debut - and the return of Rolando Aarons on loan from Huddersfield Town and Kerr is convinced the squad will keep improving as they shake off the ignominy of their European exit.
"There is a talented group there, but they were low on confidence after the European result," Kerr admitted.
"They had to be picked up and put back in a good place again.
"That's what we've had to do short term but longer-term we hope we get the best out of these boys and that they get the style we are trying to implement, so they can go and thrive off of what we are trying to do.
"There's a lot more to come from them and we are starting to see very good performances from them, especially in the cup against Inverness and the Dundee United game which we felt was one of our best performances, albeit without getting the result we probably deserved.
"We are seeing strides but we need to keep working hard, keep getting the players to believe in what we are doing and I like to think we've got a squad that is willing to challenge each other.
"There's competition for places and it keeps everybody on their toes."
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