Hearts outcast Banks moves to United

Published on Tuesday 2 June 2009 22:49

DUNDEE United have confirmed the signing of goalkeeper Steve Banks as player/coach.

The 37-year-old has agreed a three-year contract a day after securing his release from Hearts. Banks went from first-choice stopper at Tynecastle to youth-team goalkeeping coach earlier this season but he will be involved in the United first team. United manager Craig Levein has signed him as back-up keeper but the Englishman may find himself as a number one again if the club struggle to find a replacement for Celtic-bound Lukasz Zaluska.

Levein said: "With Lukasz Zaluska, Michael McGovern and now Scott Thomson all leaving, I wanted to find an experienced goalkeeper who could still play at the highest level and had the necessary qualifications to act as goalkeeping coach. I had to act quickly to secure the services of Stevie Banks who meets these criteria in every respect.

"Stevie will act as back-up keeper for our new first-team keeper, but has such experience and ability that I would have no hesitation in starting him in the first team, should the replacement for Lukasz take a little longer than anticipated to find."