Adam Murray was hailed for his courage after asking to step down as Oxford United's captain. The 26-year-old midfielder, who took over as skipper from Barry Quinn in the summer, felt the role was inhibiting his game. His request was accepted by United manager Darren Patterson, who said: "He came to us and asked if the captaincy could be taken off him and given to someone else. "He just thought his game was not what it should be, and he wanted to get back to where he was last season, when many observers, myself included, thought he was the best midfielder in the league. "I had a lot of admiration for him as a player beforehand anyway, but he has greatly gone up in my esteem as a person for doing this, which was completely off his own bat. "It takes some courage to admit it when something seems not to be working, and I know how very proud he was when he was given the armband. "He has done this selflessly for the good of the team, not for him." Murray said: "I am very proud to have been asked to captain the side and have enjoyed it, but I feel it's best for the team if I hand the role on to somebody else. "Whatever I do in life I have to give 100 per cent, but I feel that being captain is stopping me from doing that. I can feel myself getting frustrated in matches and not concentrating on my own game. "I want to get back to having the freedom to play my own game that I felt I had last season. I will help those around me and whoever is captain has my total support, but I want to get back to doing what I do best." Patterson added: "Adam was outstanding last season and that was why we looked to him as captain this time, but he is big enough to stand up and say that he hasn't reached those heights since he took over the armband. I thank Adam for his honesty and bravery. "He is an integral part of our team and hopefully this will be a weight off his shoulders. "I will sit down with two or three people over the next few days and see who takes over as captain. There are a few strong candidates and we will look at the situation ahead of the game at Kidderminster."