WEYMOUTH manager Bobby Wilkinson has confirmed midfielder Tom Bearwish as the club’s new captain until the end of the season.

Bearwish succeeds Xander McBurnie, with Wilkinson at pains to insist the former Barnet man had “done nothing wrong”.

McBurnie was appointed skipper in the summer by previous boss David Oldfield but Bearwish took the captaincy against Oxford City plus Hampton & Richmond.

Speaking to Echosport, Wilkinson confirmed by selecting Bearwish to wear the armband he was putting his own stamp on the team.

READ MORE: Weymouth 2-1 Hampton & Richmond - how it happened

He said: “I’ve made Tom captain now. Xander’s done nothing wrong. I’m trying something different.

“Xander’s been a brilliant captain, I make that clear, but Tom is the lad I would give the armband to if I was at the start of the season.

“So, I decided: ‘Why am I waiting? Let’s change it around’. I wanted Xander to concentrate on his game.

“Tom is for me a leader and a warrior. He’s my captain for the rest of the season. It was time with 20 games to go.

“For me, he’s one of the first names on the teamsheet every week.

“Remember, I’ve had to play him at right-back. We’ve got him back into midfield and got that steel.”

Asked how both players had taken the news, Wilkinson added: “Xander’s been brilliant and Tom’s accepted it.

“It’s my decision, it’s what I believe in. Xander’s done nothing wrong, so when he reads about what you put, I’ve just gone with what I’ve gone with.

“I spoke to both of them and Xander was properly a captain. He went: ‘No problems, gaffer. Whatever you think, I’ll back your decision’.

“Then, when I gave it to Tom his chest came out and he said: ‘I’ll lead these boys for you’.

“That’s where I’m so honest. No-one’s made a mistake. I’ve not taken it for anything else apart from something different. It’s my team and I want to do it.”