EAST FIFE released a short statement yesterday to announce that Willie Aitchison had left his role as manager.

The former Hearts youth coach would use only one word to explain why: results, most recently a defeat by Forfar Athletic on Saturday, causing the SPFL League 1 club to end his tenure after just five months. Full-back Gary Naysmith has since been placed in interim charge and is considered a strong candidate to take the job permanently, with Jimmy Calderwood also linked to the post.

Having been released from his duties, Aitchison spoke freely about his spell in charge, having been appointed initially by a consortium led by pub chain owner Lee Murray. A former youth coach at Tynecastle and Cowdenbeath, Aitchison could understand the case which had been brought against him - the defeat by Forfar was the club's ninth of the season - but sought to balance that with the weight of work he had done around Bayview.

Victories such as redressing the club's youth system would not count as much as league wins, though, with a board meeting yesterday ending in a statement which implied that he had left of his own volition. "It wasn't my decision directly. The club didn't want to call it a 'sacking' because they didn't think that I'd done anything wrong, it was just a few results had gone against us and they wanted a change," said Aitchison, who has left with East Fife ninth in League 1 and three points off the bottom.

"I can see it from their point of view but my remit had been about more than the results; I was asked to overhaul the club and I think if you asked anybody there now, they would tell you things are running far better than they maybe had done under so-called more experienced managers before. I was also told when I came in that they would be happy with third bottom because it would allow them to maintain their financial plan. If we had beaten Forfar then we would be in that position and equal on points with them. It is just unfortunate that some things went against us."

Poor form had told on Allan Moore already, with the 48-year-old sacked as manager of Morton on Saturday evening following a heavy defeat by Livingston. The burden of turning the campaign around - Morton have won just once in 13 league matches - has now been placed on interim manager David Hopkin, who had been in charge of the Greenock club's development squad.

The 43-year-old played had two spells at Cappielow in a playing career which also comprised moves to Chelsea, Leeds United and seven Scotland appearances. Hopkin has been made the favourite to assume the role permanently, although former Morton players Jim Duffy and Stephen Aitken, currently in charge of League 1 Stranraer, have also been linked strongly to a return. Billy Reid, who was sacked by Hamilton Academical in April, has also been mooted as a potential candidate for the struggling Championship side.