PAUL Sturrock paid tribute to his departing players as they waved goodbye to the Green Army after Saturday's 3-0 win over Blackpool

Lilian Nalis, Nick Chadwick, Paul Connolly, Lee Hodges and Paul Wotton will all leave Argyle at the end of the season after the club decided not to renew their contracts.

After the game, four of them picked up commemorative items in front of 12,000 members of the Green Army to thank them for their service to the club.

Luggy said: "I'm very pleased that it went that way.

"I think that the Capaldi scenario that happened last year left a bad taste in everybody's mouth and I think it was the proper way that people from this football club should be remembered.

"They all deserved what they got today because they are all model professionals.

"They were definitely disappointed [when I broke the news], but the next day they were professional and had a spring in their step.

"None of them will have a problem finding a football club, but when I first came here, I said that I would change the personnel and switch things, and I just feel that this is needed.

"I am the manager who has lost the backbone of the old team, so the new dawn and the new era begins today."

The biggest surprise before kick-off was the inclusion of the outgoing Lee Hodges on the bench.

The versatile veteran of two Argyle Promotions replaced Jimmy Abdou with ten minutes remaining to a standing ovation from the Green Army.

Previously, Luggy had said that none of the departing payers would feature today, although it seems that there was no stopping Hodgey.

Sturrock said: "Hodgey was on the bench to give a wee twist in the tail.

"The other boys were thinking about getting injured, but Hodgey didn't really care about that and he fancied his five minutes at the end of the game, and I was down to the wire anyway with the body count anyway."