Gutted Jim Goodwin held his hands up and admitted he’d failed in his first mission as Aberdeen boss.
The Dons fired another blank in a top six shootout defeat to Ross County to ensure for the first time in nine years they will finish in the bottom half of the table.
Goodwin, who replaced sacked Stephen Glass in February, has won just one of seven games in charge and taken six points from a potential 21.
And he admitted he had enough time to turn their fortunes round.
Instead the Dons are now requiring wins to ensure they don’t get sucked into a relegation fight and had to watch County celebrate sneaking into the top six after Joseph Hungbo’s late penalty separated the sides.
The Dons left the park to a chorus of “You’re not fit to wear the jersey” from brassed off punters.
And the manager, who confirmed Jay Emmanuel Thomas’ exit is imminent, has warned his faltering side to expect big changes in the summer.
Goodwin said: “We’re all gutted. The dressing room is very flat and the players are hurting just as much as the supporters. It’s a hugely disappointing end to this part of the campaign.
“The season isn’t over, we’ve still got five games to go and we’ve got to try and restore some pride. For a club of this size, with that squad of players, to miss out on top six, it’s extremely regrettable.
“We’re not going to shy away from what’s happening and I’m going to take my fair share of the responsibility.
“I’ve been in seven weeks, I think I’ve had enough time to turn it around, and I haven’t been able to do that. It’s as simple as that.
“We played some decent football and got in good areas and created some half decent opportunities. We just weren’t good enough at those key moments. It’s cost us.
“There’s still a lot to play for. We have to win as many games as we can. Seventh is the best we can get. It’s not going to be easy.
“Since I’ve come in, I don’t think I can fault the players’ commitment. We all just need to accept we haven’t been good enough.
“I knew the task in hand when I took the job. Of course I’d looked at the squad prior to coming in. I expressed that we do need to make changes, not just the players but behind the scenes.
“We need to bring in fresh talent and unfortunately when that happens, people need to move on. I’ve been brought in to make some difficult decisions and I want autonomy.
“We’ve identified some very, very good players.”
Goodwin said he could understand the fury of the Pittodrie punters after a dismal campaign.
He said: “This club belongs to the supporters. Myself, the staff and the players are employees of the club. Inevitably, like every other club, the supporters are the ones who keep the club alive and generations of their families have been here. They have every right to criticise us.
“We had to win and hope Hearts did us a favour. Hearts did their bit but we weren’t able to do our end. We’ve just got to face what comes our way.”
The penalty award after Jonny Hayes handled Hungbo’s cross looked harsh.
But Goodwin said: “Of course I’m disappointed with that call but I don’t want to start blaming the referee for the fact we’ve lost the game. It’s a difficult time to be a defender. I don’t see Jonny Hayes’ hands in an unnatural position.
“The wide player is quite clever but we’ve got to be careful how we’re going to award penalties here because otherwise players will get wise to it and just start chipping the ball up on to people’s hands. We shouldn’t be relying on the referee making these calls.
“This probably just does sum up the way the season has gone. A club of this stature, with this squad available, shouldn’t be in this position and we all take responsibility for that.”
