The move has come out of the blue as it was widely expected that Malpas would ride out the recent storm. Quite what has motivated John Boyle and the board to act now is unclear but is hard to believe Malpas would have left voluntarily. Paul Hegarty has gone too. This season was, to be fair, always going to be a hard one but we made the worst start to a campaign in over eighty years and we finished with one win in the last 12 games. In between we occasionally showed flashes of promise but these moments were all too brief. Even when we won games we were rarely did it by playing well.
Malpas' comments in the media about various things made reflected poorly on both himself in the club. He seems to have lost the respect of some players as while the loss of Foran, Kerr and McDonald is understandable, the confusion and uncertainty over Quinn and McBride is embarrassing. The transfer market has not been his friend either with only Keith Lasley looking like a genuinely good signing. Danny Murphy may turn out to be worth keeping but the other two Irish boys seem out of their depth. Having been the only candidate in the frame when Butcher left for Sydney he wasn't a surprise appointment but in retrospect the decision was the wrong one.
Of course many managers have successful careers after slow starts - look at Billy Davies - and Malpas may turn things around somewhere else. But Fir Park cannot be used as a kindergarten for managers of the future and there is no doubting Malpas has been a failure in almost every area of his job.
We wish him all the best in his future career, there is no point in being vindictive, but this does seem like a good move for the club. Scott Leitch is in charge for now but the hunt will start immediately for a full time manager. With players available out of contract we need the new man in soon so he can start building the team for next season. The easy part of the job has been done, the hard work is only just beginning.