The departure of Charlie Mulgrew on deadline day left not only a hole to fill in the Rovers defence, but also a question as to who would take on the captaincy in his absence.

In the mind of boss Tony Mowbray there was little discussion as to who would have the armband, with Elliott Bennett, as he has done so often in recent seasons, given the honour.

Bennett is one of six ever-presents in the side so far this season and has been a regular since Mowbray took charge in February 2017, despite having previously been out of favour under Owen Coyle.

And the 30-year-old was delighted to take over the armband in Mulgrew’s absence.

“I’m honoured. I have made no secret that I love playing for this football club,” said Bennett, who signed a long-term contract last November.

“I love every one of the lads in this dressing room and the manager asking me to take over the reins while Charlie is away is a real honour. I’m privileged to lead out the lads each game.”

Bennett has been a key presence in the Rovers dressing room through their promotion campaign from League One as well as last season’s Championship campaign.

He has seemingly nailed down the right back spot, despite competition from Ryan Nyambe, and while accepting that Rovers can sometimes fall short on quality, he feels that their effort levels can rarely be brought in to question.

And Bennett believes that will stand them in good stead throughout the course of the season as they look to improve on the 15th-placed finish in 2018/19.

He added: “Everyone loves each other in the dressing room, it’s like a family in there.

“We all know the demands and will fight for each other.

“I don’t think you could ever question this team for effort.

“Sometimes we might not score, or concede silly goals, but we will always leave everything out for each other.”

Mulgrew signed a season-long loan deal at Wigan, and made his first league appearance in the 0-0 draw with Barnsley last weekend.