BRAEHEAD CLAN director Gareth Chalmers has paid tribute to departing head coach Ryan Finnerty.

Less than 24 hours after the Glasgow side were dumped out of the Elite League play-off quarter-finals 6-1 on aggregate by Dundee Stars, the axe fell on Clan's longest serving coach.

Bosses acted swiftly to make the decision that his services for the new campaign would no longer be required despite hopes from the man himself that he'd done enough during his time in Scotland to earn another deal.

However, just a few days on from that announcement, hockey and operations director Chalmers has spoken out on what was a painful decision that club bosses felt had to be made.

He said: "We’ve had four good years with Ryan at the helm, our first POFW appearance, three Gardiner Conference titles, runners up in the EIHL and Champions Hockey League qualification.

"Who remembers that superb trip to Ingolstadt and being up 1-0 to a DEL club on the road. Then that outstanding night at Braehead where we saw off Ingolstadt 6-4 – it’s one I am sure none of us will ever forget.

"From day one Ryan has been a credit to this organisation, it hurts that we collectively haven’t been able to deliver the silverware he and everyone associated with the club now deserves. However this is sport, these difficult decisions sometimes have to be made and it’s onto the future."

Chalmers and Finnerty formed a special partnership after the pair joined the organisation back in 2013, and it is this bond which made the last few days all the more harder to take.

"It’s fair to say the club was in some turmoil when he arrived," explained Chalmers. "Andy McLaughlin [club director] had just become full time, Kirsty Longmuir had departed her role as general manager and I wasn’t set to join until early October. The organisation had come off an eighth place finish and had come through a very difficult year on and off the ice.

"Myself and Ryan have had our ups and downs over the past four years, we haven’t always agreed on everything, we’ve fought, we’ve fallen out but ultimately we both have wanted the best for this great hockey club."