Tom Anderson says having the backing of his teammates has made retaking the Rovers captaincy all the more sweet.
The centre half was the unanimous choice of the Rovers squad after head coach Danny Schofield held a secret ballot to determine which player would take the armband following the departure of Adam Clayton.
Anderson was previously captain for 18 months from January 2021 and is delighted to take on the responsibility once again.
“I’m really pleased to get it back,” he said.
“When you get that respect from the players you’re playing with and they see how you work day in, day out and they put you forward to be the captain and lead them on and off the pitch, it’s important and it means a lot to me.
“I think it gives you that bit more of a lift - the players have picked me now so it’s time for me to do my work and help them. If they need me off the pitch, that’s just as important as on it, to help them get through whatever they need to be helped with.”
While he will have the honour of leading out the team, the 29-year-old is looking to encourage leadership qualities out of every Rovers player going forward.
He said: “I’ve always liked to have seen myself as a captain whether I’ve had the armband or not. And I think that’s something I really would like to get across to the players as well, probably more so this time than the last time I was captain.
“I know I have the armband on but I want 11 players out there to be captains. I want us all to be leaders and it’s not just me or whoever has the armband on.
“Collectively we need to come together and be a group of leaders. That will take us a long way.”