FORMER BBC pundit Steve Claridge has been sacked by his non-league club.
Claridge, 59, only took over at Weymouth in August.
But a horror run of results saw the club at risk of back-to-back relegations.
That included just one win in their last 11 matches and three defeats on the spin, most recently at home to Plymouth Parkway on Saturday.
The poor form left the Terras 21st in the Southern League Premier Division South with 18 points from 23 matches.
And as a result, Claridge was given the boot.
Weymouth said in a statement: “Weymouth Football Club can confirm that it has parted company with First Team Manager Steve Claridge by mutual agreement.
“The club would like to sincerely thank Steve for his hard work and contribution over the last few months.
“Current coach Jamie Wells has been appointed First Team Manager with immediate effect.
“Weymouth legend Jason Matthews has agreed to return to the club as Director of Football.
BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS
“Having a previous good working relationship together, both Jamie and Jason will work directly with the Board of Directors to ensure a smooth transition and improved results.”
Weymouth travel to rivals Dorchester on Saturday seeking a much-needed change in fortunes.
And the club decided Claridge was not the man to take charge.
He previously took charge of the Dorset side from 2003 to 2004.
Claridge also had stints in charge at Portsmouth and Millwall before a ten-year hiatus from management while still playing in non-league regularly until 2012.
His third and final stint as a Weymouth player came in 2007 and he made a brief comeback for Salisbury in 2017 aged 51 to help fill up the numbers.
Claridge was a director at Salisbury and managed the club for more than seven years and 204 matches from 2015 to 2022.
After two years with Fleetlands, he returned to Weymouth in the summer.
He played for more than 20 clubs across 30 years and featured 49 times in the Premier League with Leicester, where he earned cult hero status for his winners in the 1996 play-off and 1997 League Cup finals.
The former Cambridge United, Birmingham City and Portsmouth striker also served as a pundit and presenter for the BBC.
He was a regular on Football Focus, BBC Radio 5 Live and the Football League Show.
Steve Claridge’s career
Senior playing career (league games only)
1983–1984 Fareham Town 13 apps (2 goals)
1984–1985 AFC Bournemouth 7 (1)
1985–1988 Weymouth 110 (28)
1988 Crystal Palace 0 (0)
1988–1990 Aldershot 62 (19)
1990–1992 Cambridge United 79 (28)
1992 Luton Town 16 (2)
1992–1994 Cambridge United 53 (18)
1994–1996 Birmingham City 88 (35)
1996–1998 Leicester City 63 (17)
1998 → Portsmouth (loan) 10 (2)
1998 Wolverhampton Wanderers 5 (0)
1998–2001 Portsmouth 104 (34)
2001 → Millwall (loan) 6 (3)
2001–2003 Millwall 85 (26)
2003–2004 Weymouth 47 (24)
2004 Brighton & Hove Albion 5 (0)
2004–2005 Brentford 4 (0)
2005 → Wycombe Wanderers (loan) 4 (0)
2005 Wycombe Wanderers 15 (4)
2005 Millwall 0 (0)
2005 Gillingham 1 (0)
2005–2006 Bradford City 26 (5)
2006 → Walsall (loan) 7 (1)
2006–2007 AFC Bournemouth 1 (0)
2007 Worthing 1 (0)
2007 Harrow Borough 4 (2)
2009 Weymouth 1 (1)
2011–2012 Gosport Borough 11 (4)
2017 Salisbury 1 (0)
Total 829 (256)
Managerial career
2000–2001 Portsmouth
2003–2004 Weymouth
2005 Millwall
2015–2022 Salisbury
2023–2025 Fleetlands
2025 Weymouth
