BY ALAN TEMPLE – @CCP_Sport
RAITH ROVERS have parted company with Gary Locke after the free-falling Fifers saw their winless run stretch to 14 games.
The Stark’s Park outfit confirmed the decision on Tuesday night, with the former Kilmarnock and Hearts boss departing the club just seven months after replacing Ray McKinnon at the helm.
Rovers are just four points above Ayr United in the final Championship relegation playoff place after a Lee Kilday goal was enough to condemn them to a 1-0 defeat against Morton.
With Locke in discussions with Rovers chief executive Eric Drysdale, no representative from the club was available to address the media following the encounter.
Instead it was left to Jim Duffy to pick over the bones of a hard fought triumph which tees up Sunday’s trip to Rangers in the Scottish Cup perfectly.
He said: “This is our bread and butter. The Rangers game is the bonus but this was really important.
“That’s why I was delighted, because the players’ focus was absolutely 100 per cent. No-one could look and say we were distracted. It was emphasised to the players and they showed that their full concentration was on the Raith Rovers game.
“We showed a bit of character to bounce back from a disappointing result at the weekend. It will be a great game on Sunday and now they can look forward to it.”
