WORCESTER City's maverick midfielder and stand-in skipper Kyle Belmonte admitted he was "absolutely awful" on Saturday, but admitted it was an "unreal" experience to lead his hometown club for the first time.

In the absence of both club captain Adam Mace and vice-captain Elliot Keightley, Belmonte was handed the armband for the 2-1 win over Longlevens at Sixways, in which Jordan Lymn scored a dramatic 102nd-minute winner.

Regardless of Saturday's rare off day, by his own admission, being the captain of his hometown club is not something he will forget.

"It was a lovely moment actually," said Belmonte. "Cornesy (manager, Chris Cornes) always says I will never, ever be a captain but he gave it to me and I didn't even know what to do with it, didn't even fit my arm properly!

"But to be a captain for my own, hometown club was unreal. And when you think of some of the captains this club has had, they are streets ahead of me so to even be in that bracket is something to be proud of."

The 24-year-old was nowhere near his best in the game and suggested that, maybe, the added responsibility weighed on him.

"I was absolutely awful," he added. "But it was probably because I had the armband on, it weighed me down a little bit, it didn't even fit around my arm, but that's what I mean with this team, even if you have a bad game, there are other players to pull you through.

"But, we won, so I don't care and I was the captain of my hometown club, which is unreal."

There is, however, no doubting Belmonte's impact on City this season. He is currently second in the race for the Hellenic League Premier golden boot with 29 goals in 34 games, three behind Mangotsfield's Jaydn Crosbie.

But it's not just his goals, it's his character and personality off the pitch that shines through.

City have their sight set on winning the lot in 2023/24 and, if they do, Belmonte will have played a hugely significant role both on and off the pitch.