Owen also worked with Celtic and Sheffield Wednesday

Rangers fitness coach Adam Owen is helping Welsh Premier side The New Saints prepare for the new season.

With the Europa League starting later in June, Owen is currently working with Saints and they will use his training programme until next May.

"He had the experience with Glasgow Rangers and he's prepared a similar programme for us," Saints coach Carl Darlington told BBC Radio Shropshire.

"We need to protect our players over what will be a very long season."

Rangers reached the last 16 of the Europa League last term before being knocked out by PSV Eindhoven.

Three days later they beat Celtic in the League Cup final before pipping their Glasgow rivals to the Scottish Premier League title.

"Adam's an old friend of mine, and his help to us will be invaluable - we have three weeks to be ready for whoever we play in the Europa League, and then the Welsh season will get going," added Darlington.

Owen, 30, started his coaching career with the youth squad at home-town club Wrexham.

After obtaining a Sports Science degree and a UEFA 'A' licence, Owen moved to Celtic as a youth coach before taking over the reserve team squad.

He then moved again, to take a first-team position at Sheffield Wednesday as the Yorkshire club's head fitness and rehabilitation coach.

In March 2007 he returned to Scotland to join the management team at Rangers, working with Walter Smith and Ally McCoist.

He has also recently started working as a sports science consultant to the Football Association of Wales.

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