Brighton rock Tommy Elphick has been hailed as the inspiration behind Bournemouth’s remarkable rise to the Premier League.

Centre-half Elphick has skippered Albion’s South Coast rivals to the top- flight, three years after breaking his bond with the Seagulls to sign for the Cherries.

They were almost relegated from the Football League six years ago but Elphick is now set to lead them against Chelsea, Arsenal and the might of Manchester next season after Monday’s promotion-clinching 3-0 win at home to Bolton.

Fellow ex-Seagull Steve Cook, the other half of the defensive partnership with Elphick forming the backbone of Bournemouth’s triumph, said: “I have known Tommy for a long time and respect him a lot, as a player and as a person.

“We have a good partnership on the pitch and a good friendship off it.

“Towards the end of last season we put together some good performances as a pair and we have carried that over to this season.

“He has always been a very big character on the pitch, at training and in the dressing room. He was the one that kept everyone together when we had our little blip. That is what you need from a captain and everybody looks up to him.”