At last someone has done the decent thing.
It may have taken England manager Fabio Capello the best part of a week to come to his decision but when he relieved John Terry of the captain's armband on Friday he reached the right one.
A considered one. An honourable one. The only one which could restore pride and honour to those who aspire to lead their country.
Terry might be a fine defender and natural leader of players on a football pitch. That has never been in doubt.
But leadership is more than shaking fists and screaming orders.
It is about commanding respect. It is about having the trust of all those around you.
Terry had lost both. He had lost the respect of some players after allegations he had an affair with Vanessa Perroncel, the ex-girlfriend of England team-mate Wayne Bridge, also a former club-mate of Terry's at Chelsea.
That was clear from the wave of support for Bridge at Manchester City and elsewhere.
Capello would have asked himself whether in the preparations for the World Cup and in the heat of South Africa itself he could rely on an unbreakable bond between players and captain.
He clearly believes after the revelations of the past week the answer is no.
The morality of Terry's behaviour, which has been debated up and down Britain for the past week, would have been part of Capello's thinking too.
When he took his six-million-pound-a-year job Capello held auditions for the captaincy and he insisted then the successful candidate would be a role model.
On so many counts off the pitch Terry has let him down.
Not just in salacious headlines. The defender was also accused of using his role as England skipper for personal gain when an agency to which he was linked included his status in an e-mail offering his services to enhance its business.
Terry might have ridden the storms if the latest furore had not involved a team-mate.
But in the past week Terry has become a figure of ridicule, taunted by supporters and his flaws and follies - and there were many - scrutinised by the nation.
"After much thought I have made the decision that it will be best for me to take the captaincy away from John Terry," said Capello in a statement.
And it is best for the manager. No doubt. Even so, Capello could have done without such disruption five months out from the World Cup.
Rio Ferdinand will take over the captaincy with Steven Gerrard as his deputy and there is logic in that considering they were the ones auditioned by Capello when he took over.
But whoever wears the captain's armband at the World Cup they have to accept that they have a responsibility which goes beyond what they do on the football pitch.
In so many ways the England captain has become a symbol for the nation. He embodies the emotion and the expectation which accompanies England at every major tournament. His face in every newspaper and magazine. His thoughts sought by media and fans alike.
He is the figure who encapsulates the Three Lions. It is not always an enviable task. It can be onerous. But it is the greatest honour which can be bestowed on an England footballer.
Terry never quite got that.
