Dunfermline delivering a sacking just two days before Christmas is stark proof of the often brutal nature of football.
For James McPake, there will be little cheer this festive period after his dismissal as manager.
The news emerged on Monday morning, with the Pars reflecting on a ‘challenging’ season as they announced their move.
It may have seemed increasingly inevitable given a campaign littered with bitter disappointments and a fanbase growing more and more frustrated with every loss.
But, as ever, the road to the final destination has been a winding one.
On the pitch, Dunfermline have taken one step forward and two back in recent weeks.
Encouraging wins over Raith Rovers, Livingston and Hamilton Accies have immediately been followed by two defeats.
The 2-0 loss to Morton in the howling wind and driving rain of Greenock on Saturday proved to be the last straw for the Pars directors.
Axe falls
An emergency board meeting was convened on Sunday whilst McPake and his family were enjoying some pre-Christmas celebrations.
With the decision taken – by the current board, but with James Bord and his potential investors kept in the loop – McPake was informed the next morning.
Asked to meet with chairman and chief executive David Cook, the 40-year-old suspected the axe may be about to fall.
All that was left was for the former Dundee boss to address his squad – something he did not get the chance to do when dismissed at Dens Park.
The reaction told its own story, with players then wanting to speak individually to their now ex-gaffer before he drove away from the ground for the final time.
The subsequent conversations with friends and family would have been even more difficult.
It leaves youth coach John McLaughlan in charge of the Fifers for Friday’s clash with bitter rivals Falkirk.
That takes McPake, and probably the directors, out of the firing line should the league leaders continue their impressive form and add a third win of the season in the fixture.
Timing
But it appears questionable timing to throw an interim boss into the fray for such an important match.
Timing has been firmly on the mind of the fans in this whole episode.
The theory was that it seemed like nothing would be done on the manager’s future whilst uncertainty surrounded the ownership of the club.
Instead, should the investment be finalised, the new consortium are either going to have a new manager just days or weeks into post or a new boss to find.
How involved Bord and his associates are in the search will be interesting.
It is known that McPake was looking forward to a fresh approach under new leadership and was hopeful of a boost to his transfer dealings in January.
That will now be someone else’s business. But they will be eager to fare better than McPake under the tutelage of DAFC Fussball GmbH.
He made his frustrations clear in the summer when he confessed he could not compete with Championship rivals in the market for similar players.
Playing catch-up from day one
The likes of Logan Chalmers, George Oakley, Chris Mochrie, Paul Hanlon, Lewis Stevenson and Dylan Easton ended up elsewhere whilst Dunfermline floundered without even an available back-up goalkeeper for the Premier Sports Cup group games.
With all transfer targets having to be signed off by Thomas Meggle, the sporting director’s attempts to tell fans that McPake’s critical comments had been ‘misconstrued’ were disingenuous.
It left Dunfermline playing catch-up right from the off in a season where their manager’s ambitions appeared to outstrip those of the club’s owners.
The purse strings were finally loosened, but only after DAFC Fussball had dropped the bombshell that they were seeking buyers for their stake.
That left a club in limbo off the field and struggling on it, where the Fifers managed just four wins – none away from home – in 18 league games.
Progress to the semi-final of the SPFL Trust Trophy and the prospect of the club’s first-ever success in the competition will now fall to someone else.
The new incumbent will assume a squad, packed with young players and a few older, experienced figures, that has failed to prove in 18 months in the Championship if it is under-performing or not up to scratch.
But, in the likes of Lewis McCann, Ewan Otoo, Kane Ritchie-Hosler, Taylor Sutherland, Matty Todd and Sam Young, the next manager will have improved players nurtured by McPake that can provide hope for the future.
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