FORMER Arsenal and England star Tony Adams has joined Weymouth Football Club as part of a major shake up at the Wessex Stadium.

The retired defender has become the Terras' new club consultant as part of a rescue package spearheaded by resort-born author and sports journalist Ian Ridley, who last night became Weymouth's new chairman.

Directors at the cash-strapped club agreed to proposals involving a five man consortium injecting an initial £100,000 into the club over the next three months. The deal will also see former Weymouth player Steve Claridge, whose biography, Tales From The Boot Camp, was penned by the 48-year-old Observer Football columnist, invest in the club before possibly returning to the Terras once he quits full-time football.

Mr Ridley, who declined to reveal the other three members of his consortium, said ex-Gunner Adams will recommend players, act as ambassador for the struggling Dr Martens Premier Division outfit and attend fundraising functions.

Mr Adams, 36, who won 66 caps for his country and captained Arsenal to both Premiership and FA Cup glory, is currently studying for a sports science degree at Brunel University and his acclaimed biography, Addicted, was writted by Mr Ridley.

He told the Echo today: "I am delighted to support my friend in his new enterprise and I am looking forward to visiting Weymouth in the future."

Mr Claridge, 37, is set to invest about £20,000 into the club and offer football advice before considering a bigger role once he retires from top-flight football.

The current Millwall star said today: "I still think I've got some good football left in me at a high level and I want to keep playing for another season or so.

"In the meantime, though, I am happy to back Ian's plans for the club, both financially and with help and advice. Ian is the perfect man for the job and he has the drive to take the club forward but first and foremost I am a Millwall player."

The deal has seen Mr Ridley become chairman and director Peter Shaw take over as vice-chairman, with Mr Ridley saying the move represented a 'new era' for the club.

He said: "I like watching Premiership football and I like the people in the Premiership, but this is where my heart is and always will be. I'm finally in a position to do something about making this club what it can become and I'm looking forward to that. "There are so many worrying things about it like the debt, but I want us all to have fun again. I want us all to see us play football the Weymouth way, and I want people to realise this is a big club."

A bid by Mr Ridley for regime change at the Wessex Stadium failed in January but hours of negotiations saw the deadlock broken and an agreement reached with fellow directors.

Mr Ridley, who lives in Hertfordshire but will but spend part of his week in Weymouth, added: "I thought for about a month maybe it wasn't meant to be, but I kept coming to the club as a fan. I'm not like an investor or property developer who wants to get on a football board."

Question marks now surround current manager Geoff Butler's future at the club, with Mr Ridley stating every position at the Wessex Stadium is being looked at.

"What I've said to him is that he has a contract and in the short term I simply want to evaluate everything in the club from top to bottom," he said.

Full story in Echo Sport.