Losing the captaincy helped bring about Kyle Cameron’s departure from Notts County.
And being offered it at St Johnstone has reinforced the centre-back’s conviction that he’s made the right move in coming to Scotland.
But it did mean it came as a (pleasant) shock to be told the news.
“It was a little bit of a surprising one,” the former Scotland under-21 international admitted.
“It’s not something I’d discussed with the manager until after I signed.
“It’s a huge privilege and honour to be captain of a Scottish Premiership club.
“Especially with me being on loan, it shows the faith the management team have in me.
“Now it’s about me repaying that faith and trying to earn the respect of the lads in the changing room and showing them what I can do.
“It can be tricky because you never know whether the lads in there are going to take it well or not.
“But all of them have been very helpful and spot on this week.
“We’ve got a great group of senior pros who are there to lean on if anyone needs anything.
“Even though I am captain, there are four or five lads who could be seen as captains without an armband.
“They are senior boys with a lot of experience, who know the league and can help out when needed.”
Undeserved change
“Without going into it too much, it was one of the reasons I wanted to leave,” he said.
“I felt like when you lose that responsibility without feeling you deserved to lose it, that sort of trust goes.
“You’re not sure where you stand on things.
“I wanted to get out of my comfort zone, test myself and take on a new challenge.
“When this presented itself it was something I was very excited about.
“This is a league I always wanted to give a go and I’m delighted the chance has come up now.”
Standard-setter
Saturday’s season-opener at Brechin City in the Premier Sports Cup is Cameron’s first opportunity to put down a leadership marker.
“A captain always tries to drive standards,” he explained. “To be a model pro, which I am hoping I can be here.
“I was vice-captain at Torquay learning from Asa Hall, then going to the captaincy at Notts was another step up.
“You learn as you go.
“You make mistakes but I feel I am ready to take that step up and be a captain here.
“And hopefully I put the things I learned into practice here and drive the lads forward as much as I can.
“I have ideas of what I want to try and implement.
“I’ll put my stamp on it where I can and try and lift the tempo and standards when I can.
“But we are in a really good position and are ready to attack these cup games right from the start.”
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