Jason Kerr is to leave Wigan Athletic, the League One club has confirmed, along with seven other departing players. The BBC reports that the defender's exit brings to a close an association with the Latics that has lasted almost five years.
Kerr had served as club captain during his time at the DW Stadium, a role that speaks to the standing he held within the dressing room. The departure of eight players at once points to a significant reshaping of the squad as Wigan look ahead to the coming season.
Wigan have had a turbulent few years, navigating financial difficulties and the attendant instability that tends to follow a club through the lower divisions when off-field pressures mount. Building a settled group in those circumstances is rarely straightforward, and Kerr's captaincy represented a thread of continuity through an unsettled period.
With Kerr's exit now confirmed, the question of who assumes the armband will be among the first the management must answer ahead of pre-season. Wholesale departures of this kind also open space in the wage structure, which may allow the club to bring in new faces — though the scale and ambition of any recruitment will depend on the resources available.
For Kerr, approaching his next chapter after half a decade at one club, interest from elsewhere in League One or beyond seems likely, though nothing has been reported at this stage.