Chairman and Leish Post Morton

John Yorkston and Jim Leishman congratulate Jim McIntyre and his team for First Division title

Chairman John Yorkston was uncharacteristically short of words at the end of the Morton game:-

"My thoughts are all over the place, I am absolutely delighted. We have waited four years for this and pleased that we have done it at last and with a bit of style. We have done it playing good football - the way football should be played - and that's ideal."

John praised his Manager for taking the club into the SPL:-

"We have got to where we want to be and hopefully we will make a go of it and stay up there. Jim McIntyre has done a great job and hopefully he will do it in the Premier League."

He was asked how significant SPL status was for the Club:-

"It is well known that in our case our turnover will probably double - from £2m to £4m or £5m. It is huge."

Jim Leishman was acclaimed by the fans who flooded on to the Cappielow surface but he was quick to point out that it was Jim McIntyre's ability to eek success out of a tight budget that was the formula that has led to championship glory. Jim described his feelings when he spoke to the website at Greenock:-

"I feel great for Jim McIntyre, he deserves all the credit for this. Him, Gerry McCabe and the players obviously, they are the ones who got the promotion. It has been a lot of hard work for three and a half years and times when people had doubts but he proved his worth today and last week. That is fantastic."

Jim didn't want to detract from that but acknowledged that it was nice to hear the fans appreciation from the pitch at the end of the match:-

"I have tried to keep out of the road because of the kind of profile I have with the Dunfermline people and the Dunfermline fans. Make no mistake it is Jim McIntyre's team; he is the one who has built this team, he is the one who has managed the team, coached them, got them forward and got them through the hard part.

"It was nice to hear that from the fans because they know how I feel about Dunfermline Athletic. It means as much to me as it does to them and certainly as much as it meant to Jim McIntyre today. Jim deserves all the credit. That includes his family - his wife is a great support to Jim and his kids - so it is really really pleasing for them as well.

"It wasn't just about managing a football team; it was about managing budgets and he has worked hard at understanding and controlling the budget. He has kept that under control while building a good team. You saw today two wingers - Joe Cardle and David Graham - the way they play football is pleasing. Getting the ball down, build from the back, get it wide and getting crosses in. We created lots of chances today."

Leish highlighted Macca's ability to pick up good players, especially in the run up to the title finale and looked forward to assisting plan the next steps:-

"Martin Hardie was terrific, Liam Buchanan is a good player, Kevin Rutkiewicz organised the defence today and he has made some good signings within the budget. We have meetings all next week, Jim and I. We have guidelines from the Board and we will put our heads together.

"It is a sad time for players right now, and a happy time. Some players will get a new contract, others might not get their contract renewed. They can all leave as champions, every player who took part in one game, two games, three games, whatever can all leave as having helped to create a champions team."

Austin McCann, Alex Keddie, Pat Clarke, Steven Bell, David Graham, Liam Buchanan, Ryan Thomson and Paul Willis are the only players whose contracts run in to next season. Leish described that as being a strong point:-

"It means that new contracts can be offered to players that the Manager wants to sign and we can bring in new players as well. If we hadn't gone up, we might have been saying 'great we have only eight players left, we can rebuild'. Going up it is the same. The thing just now is to enjoy the moment, enjoy the achievement and enjoy a hard season.

"We will get the trophy next week at home, which is great for the home fans and you saw them today - the place will be rocking next week. They will be having a wee face painting competition next week."