Championship Round-up: Plymouth sack Reid after eighth consecutive defeat

(David Ashdown)

Peter Reid was sacked as manager of Plymouth Argyle yesterday after a run of eight successive league defeats. He had been in charge of the financially stricken club for 15 months.

Reid's departure comes after Plymouth lost 2-0 at Southend on Saturday, leaving them bottom of League Two with one point from nine games.

Reid took over at the start of last season before the club went into administration with debts of £17million while in League One in March and, after being deducted 10 points, were relegated two months' later.

Acting chairman Peter Ridsdale said: "Peter [Reid] has had to put up with more in a short period of time than most managers have to put up with in a whole career. Peter inherited an unsustainable wage bill and a club that was in financial meltdown.

"It is crucial that we give ourselves time to attempt to preserve Football League status and therefore it is felt that a change of manager now is the only option," added Ridsdale, who also revealed that an interim management team would be named imminently.

Devon-based businessman James Brent has re-emerged as the front-runner to buy Plymouth after plans for Bishop International to complete their takeover failed to materialise. The Gibraltar-based firm failed to come up with the £6m needed to buy Home Park and the land surrounding it.

Middlesbrough manager Tony Mowbray, meanwhile, was impressed with his players' determination after they won 1-0 at Crystal Palace in the Championship. "The quality and the grit of the side was shown here," said Mowbray, whose team prevailed courtesy of Marvin Emnes' 65th-minute effort, despite Joe Bennett being sent off 10 minutes later for two bookable offences.

Brighton relinquished top spot after their first loss of the season, a 1-0 defeat at Leicester. "Our passing and crossing was not at our best," admitted Brighton's manager, Gus Poyet, whose side were sunk by Yuki Abe's header 45 seconds after the interval. "The players are devastated but we need to make sure we learn."