Fly away Paul - striker departs East Fife

The forward, who had been in his fourth spell at Bayview after being brought back by boss Gary Naysmith last season, has cited work reasons for his decision.

Struggling to juggle his commitments with East Fife’s match schedule has taken its toll, Naysmith said, and he reluctantly agreed to a parting of the ways earlier this week.

McManus played his last game for East Fife at then weekend when he was sent off during a 3-1 loss at Livingston.

The strain of trying to mix work with football, Naysmith reckons, was a contributing factor to McManus being ordered off for foul and abusive language towards the ref.

He said: “We have tried to help Paul with this matter by allowing him to miss a night training and only come through to Edinburgh once a week to train.

“Although this has helped to a certain degree, Paul was still struggling to report on time on match days due to him working on a Saturday morning and this was starting to become stressful for him.

“This has been on Paul’s mind for a few weeks now and I am sure it played a part in his sending off at Livingston.

“He spoke to me after the game and explained his situation and I have now reluctantly agreed to Paul’s request.

“He felt that it wasn’t right to take a wage from the club when he couldn’t totally commit himself to us and I am grateful for his honesty.

“I’d like to personally thank Paul for his contribution to the team since he came in at the end of last season.

“His experience off the park was a big factor in us winning the league and I wish him well in the future.”

McManus broke through the youth ranks at Bayview at the very beginning of what has been a successful career in the Scottish game.

The striker has had two spells at Fife rivals Raith Rovers as well as turning out for Albion Rovers, Brechin and Arbroath amongst others.

But it’s in the black and gold he’s most familiar, with a period at the club from 2007 to 2011 being his most prolific, netting 44 times in 82 league starts.