STUNNED skipper Andy Geggan insists the Pars players must take responsibility after manager Jim Jefferies informed them of his decision to step down on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old admitted that he was disappointed to see the man who he described as being a “great influence on my career” leave his job with Athletic five points adrift of League One leaders Forfar.

Geggan, who also backed the appointment of John Potter as manager until the end of the season, told Press Sport that he would be always be thankful to Jefferies for leading the club as it plunged into administration, leaving him and his team-mates facing an uncertain future.

He said, “That was one of the worst times of my career and the gaffer stuck by us – at least he told us the truth. He came in every morning and was straight to the point and got us through it.

“Sometimes when we were at home he’d phone and tell us what was going on and I am 100 per cent thankful to him for that because it was a tough time for the boys.

“He’s made me better since I came here and brought me back into full-time football, which has been a bonus. He gave me the captaincy as well so there’s not much more I can say but we are shocked a wee bit because since he’s been here he’s done really well.

“We kind of had a feeling that he was going to go at the end of the season but we never really thought anything of it. He said that when he went home on Sunday, he thought about it and decided that was enough was enough and then wished us all the best.

“I think some of the boys, like myself, feel that we could’ve been doing better and are not performing the way we were last season. But John and Neil are good choices to take over and will keep our spirits up and we’ll get together and start our season on Saturday. We’ll be ready for it.” Striker Michael Moffat was signed by Jefferies from Ayr United in the summer and he said, “Nobody really expected it and I’ve got a lot to thank him for because he brought me up here. Having only signed in the summer, I didn’t have a lot of time to work with him which is disappointing but, unfortunately in football, it’s the manager’s job that’s on the line if things don’t go his way.

“But as players we have to take responsibility because it’s us that have been putting in performances that haven’t been good enough. We need to get that sorted; we’re five points behind which isn’t great at this stage and we need to kick on in the league. It’s a massive game on Saturday and we need to go and win it.

“With the squad we have here, we should be doing a lot better than what we are but the table doesn’t lie. We all know that and although I’m still pretty confident we can win the league, we don’t want to be playing catch-up for too long or the gap to get any bigger. We need to put a run together.

“There were a few words said after the game on Saturday. We’re all pulling in the same direction and I’m sure the boys will be giving everything for John and Neil.” Midfielder Josh Falkingham commented, “It’s a disappointment and he didn’t really say too much to us. He just thanked us for our efforts but it’s not nice is it? We didn’t expect it and the meeting was very quick.” Andy Stirling, who arrived at East End in the close season alongside Moffat, added, “It’s just a disappointing day. It was a big game on Saturday anyway but it’s even bigger now and we have to make sure that it goes for us and we go on and win promotion. It’s just a really bad day because it has happened a bit earlier than expected but we had a good training session on Tuesday so it can only get better.”