WEYMOUTH player-manager Jason Matthews has aired his views on the departure of central defender Jamie Laird.

Laird, who was left on the bench during Weymouth’s final games of the season, took to Twitter to voice his exit and thanked the club’s fans for their support throughout the campaign. He was unavailable for further comment to Echosport.

The Terras’ boss signed the former Weston-super-Mare man on a one-year contract last summer and also brought Laird’s father Craig to the club as his assistant.

On the situation, Matthews said: “I have a few tough decisions to make and I felt that Jamie had an outstanding first half of the season but didn’t quite live up to his high standards in the second half of the season.

“There will be a few tough decisions and that was the first one that I had to make. It wasn’t easy and I didn’t enjoy doing it because Jamie is a good lad and I wish him all the best for the future.

“Jamie has been the first really and we had to free up some funds.”

One of Laird’s most memorable moments in a Weymouth shirt came when he scored against Dorchester Town in the first Ridgeway derby of the season last August.

Also quizzed on whether a replacement was in the pipeline for the defender, Matthews said: “I have a few people lined up to replace him but there is nothing concrete at the moment.

“We are currently in talks with two or three people that we have viewed over the season and we will see how negotiations will materialise.

“A lot of people are asking for fortunes at this time of the season and, contrary to what a lot of other clubs think, our budget is not as big as people seem to think it is.”

The Weymouth chief also revealed that Jamie’s brother Callum Laird would not be at the Bob Lucas Stadium next term.

He did however state that he is hoping to tie up some of his current squad on new deals within the next week.