Darren Fletcher leads charge at West Brom

But as he prepares for his home debut against Swansea tonight, the Baggies' new skipper insists he will have plenty of help.

Fletcher was handed the armband for his debut at Burnley on Sunday, ending Chris Brunt's four-year captaincy reign.

It threw the former Manchester United midfielder immediately to the head of Tony Pulis's ranks.

But the 31-year-old, who was a long-time captain of Scotland, insists he will not be leading the side on his own.

Fletcher said: "I found out just before kick-off. The manager pulled me in said I'd be captain. As you'd expect, I was more than happy to do that.

"They're a great bunch of lads and there are a lot of leaders in there already who are going to be a big help to me going forwards.

"It's responsibility but I don't have to take all of it. It's not all down to one player.

"I'm here to get stuck in like everybody else and try to help as much as I can and pass on some experience, but it is a good bunch and there are plenty of leaders in there.

"A combination of that makes it a great place. It's a great dressing room.

"There is great camaraderie, they are all willing to work hard and fight for the cause, and if we can just add a bit of quality we will be fine.

"There are some nice lads in there but the character they showed on Sunday was great.

"At 2-0 down a lot of teams could have crumbled and lost by a big margin but they all dug in and we got a point and I was proud of them."

Fletcher has been handed a baptism of fire since completing his move from Old Trafford, with two games in four days against opponents Baggies fans would expect their side to compete with.

They came up short for most of Sunday's game, only to rescue a point thanks to an equaliser from the unlikely figure of Brown Ideye.

And Fletcher hopes that goal can help kick-start their fight to avoid the drop.

He said:"Going 2-0 down wasn't good but all credit to the lads for the character they showed and in the end it was a massive point for us, no doubt.

"We eventually got back to 2-2 and could have gone on and won it. At 2-0 down I was thinking we were still in the game. You've got to keep believing and I said that to the lads.

"One goal, especially before half-time, changes the game completely and puts the pressure back on them because they're thinking they've got to score again, so I knew we were still in the match and it played out that way.

"The body felt great. I enjoyed the battle – it was a good battle. It's been a smooth transition for me and I'm really enjoying it.

"It is a fantastic club with some fantastic people, a fantastic manager and there were no false hopes. I knew what to expect.

"I was excited. I couldn't wait to get going for my first game and was glad it didn't end in defeat.

"The pitch wasn't great so there wasn't much football played and sometimes you need to play to the conditions. Looking back it's a massive point for us and we can take great confidence from that."

Both of Albion's goals came from corners and, with boss Tony Pulis's teams notoriously effective from set-pieces, Fletcher hopes the strikes from Brunt and Ideye were sign of things to come.

He said: "We work hard on set-pieces. It's all about good deliveries and that was the key."