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Gordon Greer (left) made 25 appearances for Blackburn Rovers last season

Kilmarnock manager Lee McCulloch has strengthened his defensive options by signing Scotland international Gordon Greer.

The 36-year-old returns to Rugby Park for a second spell, having left the club in July 2007 to move to England.

Greer spent last season at Blackburn Rovers, making 25 appearances as the club was relegated to League One.

Killie captain Stevie Smith said: "Gordon is a really nice guy, but he obviously has really high standards."

He becomes Kilmarnock's 10th signing of the summer and Smith is pleased with the changes.

"The signings we made have brought a bit experience into the team, which was needed," said the 31-year-old full-back.

"I don't think the balance of the squad has been right for a few years.

"The manager has tried to address that by signing the likes of Kirk Broadfoot, Gordon Greer, Chris Burke and even Lee Erwin has played in the division as well."

Greer's first period at Rugby Park came in 2004 and he left for Doncaster Rovers three years later.

Stevie Smith is looking forward to the new Premiership season

A loan spell, and then a permanent move, to Swindon Town followed before Greer joined Brighton & Hove Albion, where he was appointed club captain.

His season was ended by injury in February and he was released at the end of the season, but Smith has been impressed by the veteran's professionalism.

"You can tell by the way he has looked after himself," he said. "He does everything properly off the pitch.

"The new players have all played at a really good level, some of them at international level, so you don't have to worry about their standards.

"There still is a lot of young players at Kilmarnock, which is great. Everyone wants to see that.

"But having guys who have played at a really high level about the club and the standards they set personally helps everyone."

Smith thinks the arrival of Greer, fellow defender Broadfoot and winger Burke would help reduce the burden of being captain.

"It is good to have them because we had me, Kris Boyd and Jamie McDonald recently who were the experienced guys," he added.

"But this might take a bit of pressure off us because there isn't just one or two people saying, 'This is what you need to do off the field, you need to prepare right' - there are seven or eight saying it, so it is good for us to have them."

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