Steve Clarke always planned to resign from his position as Scotland manager if they failed to make it out of their World Cup.
Despite the exit which was officially confirmed at the weekend, Clarke quitting came as a shock, especially because he signed a four-year contract last month.
The 62-year-old says the contract was designed to give the players comfort heading out to North America, rather than having uncertainty over his future hanging over them.
And it was always in his head to walk away should his aim of becoming the first ever Scotland manager to get out of the group stage not be met.
In an interview on the Scotland National Team's Youtube channel, Clarke said: "Listen, what I wanted to make sure was that when when I felt it was time to step away, it was time to step away. Signing the contract before was a a case of trying to give a little bit of comfort to the players knowing that we're going in, knowing that we could continue the journey.
"I always had in my head that if we didn't come out the group, which is something that we've tried to do across three tournaments now, I always had in my head that if that didn't happen, then it was probably the right time to step away. Obviously, if we had a we managed to get that extra point and and got out of the group, then I'd probably have stayed on and and tried to do another tournament."
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Asked how is he is feeling in the wake of his resignation, he added: "No, I'm good. I'm good. Obviously, when I'm going to the tournament, I know that I know the the levels that I want the team to reach.
"We didn't quite get there. And I've had a great I've had a great journey. Scotland head coach, three major tournaments, worked with the the most fantastic group of players, and it just feels like the right time to step away."
Clarke called a meeting with all of his players and staff when results in other groups confirmed Scotland would be going home.
He admits it was an emotional one after a journey with such highs and lows.
He said: "I called the meeting for after the game last night because we felt that would be the time it was confirmed that we were out. I sat all the players and staff down in in one room. A lot of peoplein the room and and obviously an emotional moment when when you tell your players that you you're stepping away after such a such a journey together.
"Some of the boys been with me right from the start. I think seven or eight of them from the start right the way through. So it was very important to me that they knew first and obviously just before we went into the meeting I had to tell my captain because I knew that he'd want to say a few words back to me. So saying goodbye to my staff and my players was yeah it was emotional."
