Port Vale captain Marc Richards has vowed to lead by example following the departure of Jim Gannon.
Vale skipper wants united front following Gannon departure
Port Vale captain Marc Richards has vowed to lead by example following the departure of manager Jim Gannon.
Scenes during and after Saturday's 3-0 defeat at Accrington made Gannon's position untenable and the beleaguered boss parted company with the club on Monday.
Caretaker boss Mark Grew and assistant Geoff Horsfield have been put in charge ahead of Tuesday night's home game against Hereford.
And Richards has urged the Vale players to maintain a united front as they aim to get their League Two promotion bid back on track.
Stick together
"It doesn't affect me as captain but I've got to try to rally the troops," he told
skysports.com.
"I've got to gee the lads up before games and it's up to me to lead the way.
"I'm working as hard as I can, and the rest of the lads are as well, and we've got to stick together."
Stewards had to escort Gannon away from angry Vale fans for his own safety after the defeat at Accrington and he was dismissed less than three months after succeeding Micky Adams.
The club had only just completed their investigation into the well-documented row Gannon had with Horsfield on the team bus to last month's win at Aldershot, while Mo Chaudry's proposed takeover drags on.
But Richards insists the Valiants must ignore off-field issues as they hope to climb back into the play-off places with three home games over the next week.
Frustration
"With the takeover bid and frustration with the manager, everything's spiralled," he said.
"But as players we've got to be big enough to deal with it and rectify things.
"We've got a game in hand and if we win that we'll slot straight back in there.
"We know we've got the players and the squad to do it. We've got the like of Louis Dodds and Gary Roberts to come back in, to make a difference and change things."
Gannon's tactics and team selection left fans and players dismayed, with Dodds and Roberts not even deemed worthy of a place on the bench at Accrington.
But they are now amongst several players who will be eager to impress under the new management duo of Grew and Horsfield.
"Some lads were disappointed because they've been left out," Richards added.
"Some hadn't even made the squad on Saturday so there was bound to be some unrest in the camp because they're not involved. But we've got to stick together, it's a team game and we can still get promoted."
