NEW ALLOA skipper Graeme Holmes says he is hoping to emulate the success of past captains Ben Gordon and Darren Young by leading club to promotion this season.

Wasps gaffer Jack Ross appointed the veteran midfielder as captain at a meeting earlier this month and he reckons it is one of the best moments of his career to receive the armband.

Fan's favourite Jason Marr will deputise as vice captain, but the 32-year-old says it will be important to have a number of leaders on the pitch as the club look to bounce straight back up to the SPFL Championship this season.

Holmes told Advertiser sport: “I am delighted be appointed the new captain of Alloa Athletic and it is one of the biggest honours of my playing career. I really didn't expect it and because I have been here for so long it probably means more to me than anyone else. The challenge for me now is to make sure I am in the team every week because the midfield is probably the strongest area of our team in terms of numbers and competition for places. I obviously have some big shoes to fill following legends like Darren Young and Ben Gordon as captain here, but I would love nothing more than to have a trophy to lift at the end of the season. It is a tough task to follow those guys, but hopefully I am up to the job and we can have a successful campaign.

“We have a lot of experience at the club, and so while I am the captain, there has got to be eleven leaders on the pitch. The likes of Jim Goodwin and Andy Graham are natural leaders on the pitch and Jason is the vice captain so we have a good mixture of characters as well as a lot of quality and hopefully that makes for a successful campaign. Jason is a worthy vice captain. He has been here for four years now and loves the club the same as I do.

“The manager has shown a lot of faith in both myself and Jason because it would have been easy for him to give the armband to players such as a Jim Goodwin or an Andy Graham with their experience and the careers they have had in the game. They are both top professionals and leaders on the pitch, so I can't thank the gaffer enough for that. We are both delighted with it and we can't wait to get out there now.”

Holmes admits he has been impressed by the squad the manager has secured that has seen them made the outright favourites for the League One title, but says it is now down to the players to deliver on the pitch and live up to the hype.

He said: “I think the gaffer has been very swift in securing his squad for next season and that will only benefit us in the long run. I have been very impressed by the players he has brought in. We have a squad full of ability and on paper we look very strong, but the key thing for us is going to be gelling together as a cohesive unit.

“I am not sure we are the outright favourites. Especially, given that we have two full time teams in the league, but maybe that is simply a testament to the business that the manager has done this summer. The league is such a competitive one though, and there is not one team in there who won't be aiming to finish in the promotion places.

“We are a new team dropping down from the division above so we have got to aim for the title, but our ultimate goal is to achieve promotion and I feel like if we don't get that then you would have to see it as a bit of failure so we will be doing our best to achieve it. I think it will be a very competitive league and I don't think anyone will run away with it, so we will have to deal with that pressure.”

The Wasps were handed a difficult start to their league campaign as they face two of last year's beaten playoff sides in Peterhead and Stranraer, but the new captain sees it as a chance to set their stall out from the start.

Holmes added: “It is a tough start for us with Peterhead at home and Stranraer away. They both made the playoffs last years and I know boys at both clubs so they will both be determined to have another good season, but if we can win those games then it maybe helps us lay down a marker so they are good games to have right at the start. We have a new surface as well now which can only help our football. We know this season we have to do much better at home and if we don't then we are not going to win the league so it would be great to get off to a flyer against Peterhead and then take it from there.”