Ritchie said:
"I felt I could have turned the club's fortunes around."
He added: ""I am disappointed, however I am proud of what was achieved last season in Barnsley FC gaining promotion to the Championship.
"May I place on record my thanks to the chairman and the board for their support during my time at Oakwell, and also to the players and supporters for their commitment and loyalty throughout my time as manager."
May we also place our on record our thanks to you Andy and Rick Holden for giving us such a great season last year and a memorable day out in Cardiff.
Meanwhile PFA Deputy Chief Exec. Mick McGuire reckons Ritchie won't be unemployed for long.
"Andy has a promotion under his belt, and there are many managers who do not have that," he said.
"He would have liked to have been given chance to finish the job at Barnsley, by stabilising this season and bouncing back.
"He can hold his head high when he reflects on what he achieved there."
Rumors are circulating that Ritchie could be tempted to join League One Scunthorpe.
Scunny sit in 3rd place in League One after a great start to the season but are without a manager after Brian Laws left for Sheffield Wednesday.
Meanwhile Chairman Gordon Shepherd has revealed the reasons behind Michael McIndoe's shock loan departure to Wolves yesterday.
Speaking to www.barnsleyfc.co.uk Shepherd said:
What I feel that you should know is the situation regarding the departure of Michael McIndoe as fans need to know the facts of the matter.
I can confirm that we did not want to lose Michael as he is such a talented and effective player but unfortunately he had a clause in his contract which facilitated a transfer should he wish to join another club. Obviously when we signed Michael from Doncaster Rovers we would have preferred not to accept such a clause but without it there would have been no deal. In the circumstances therefore we accepted that clause and hoped it would never be triggered.
Sadly, yesterday, it was and there was nothing we could do about it. It was finally signed absolutely on the deadline last night and then one or two administrative matters needed tidying up before any announcement could be made. Despite the usual conspiracy theorists we were not, and are not, hiding anything nor is there any need to do so.
A plus point that should be borne in mind is that we will make a profit on the transfer albeit a modest one.
I do hope having access to this information clears the matter up and we can now move on.
Finally, I would like to thank Michael and wish him every success in the future.