DANNY Cowley is likely to wait until the end of pre-season to decide on his next Colchester United captain.

And the U’s head coach says it is not a certainty that he will hand the armband to one of his more experienced players.

Colchester need to appoint a new skipper for the upcoming season, following Connor Hall’s departure to Port Vale.

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There are plenty of candidates for the role, with the likes of Fiacre Kelleher, Ellis Iandolo, Alex Woodyard, Ben Goodliffe and Tom Flanagan all in contention.

Speaking to fans at the club’s Open Day, boss Cowley said: “In terms of the actual captain, of course I understand why this is significant.

“But if I look at any of my successful teams, I’ve always had seven or eight leaders and I think this is important.

“Sometimes, I’ve picked a captain who’s already a really experienced leader and that can drive the standards of the team; other times, I pick a leader who I see leadership potential in and I give them the armband to try to give them the confidence to grow in their leadership.

(Image: STEVE BRADING)

“It’s always for us to look at the dynamics of the group.

“I never tend to make this decision until the back end of pre-season, because I like to look at the group and the people in the group and who the key influencers are.

“I just try to make the best decision for everyone, ultimately.”

Cowley says there will be a leadership group in place to represent the players at Colchester, this season.

He added: “How we always work is we divide the players up into groups with a senior group, a group in the middle and a young group and then a group of the players that have just signed for the club.

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“We then allow the players to vote on who they would like to represent them.

“For us, this keeps the lines of communication open.

“We have regular meetings with the leadership group and it gives us a good understanding of how all of the different groups within the dressing room are feeling.

“We’re always looking to try to improve the environment and we’ll always listen to their views and their ideas.

(Image: Richard Blaxall)

“A lot of them, especially the more experienced players, have played for different clubs and worked in different ways.

“For us, it’s always to try to use that experience.

“I like to empower the players – I think this is really important.

“I like to give them as much ownership as I can.”