DECISIVE action was taken by the board to relieve Mark McGhee of his duties in the wake of Saturday’s latest mauling and they have decided that John Ward is the man to steer us clear of relegation concerns.

They had no choice but to act after the 4-1 rout at the hands of York as the players had made it clear they were not prepared to play for their manager.

McGhee’s comments immediately after the match were telling, as he revealed that the game plan they had worked on all week had been ignored by the players. Clearly it hadn’t involved leaking four first half goals, which was as blatant a sign that you could get that the team was not responding to the manager’s methods.

It is a shame as McGhee seemed a good man, with a wealth of experience, and signs at the end of last season were very promising.

But his failure to recruit the players we needed in the summer, coupled with some bizarre selection ideas and his tendency to put square pegs in round holes, led to increasing frustration among supporters and his time was up.

We now hope the board have got it right with the appointment of John Ward, who returns for his second stint as Pirates boss after a three-year spell in the 1990s.

The football we played under him previously was at times sterile, so I am not overly enthusiastic about the decision.

I would have preferred the board held out a little longer to sound out the likes of Steve Cotterill to see if he was interested in the post.

Having said that, what we would now give for successive top half finishes in League One that we achieved under Ward, including a play-off appearance.

If he guides us away from the danger zone the board will deserve praise for taking quick action to avoid the disastrous prospect of Conference football.

We now need to unite behind the team and manager and roar the team on to three vital points against Rotherham on Saturday to ensure Gasheads can enjoy a very merry blue-and-white Christmas.

Do you agree with Jeff’s views? Have your say below.