THE Mayor of Bournemouth now has a new football shirt to go with his robes and chains, after striking an ‘own goal’ with Cherries fans.

AFC Bournemouth fan Peter Dennis Brown was among those who did a double-take after seeing Cllr Chris Mayne wearing a Southampton FC shirt while taking part in a Christmas Day dip in the sea.

The 35-year-old musician thought the mayor’s ‘faux-pas’ had struck the wrong note and decided to send a tongue-in-cheek email to the top councillor.

Cllr Mayne, who supports both Southampton and AFC Bournemouth, was happy to set the record straight and went out to buy a new Cherries shirt, which he is thrilled with.

He also met up with Peter and took him for a coffee. He then showed him some of his AFC Bournemouth programmes from years gone by.

“It’s true I am a Southampton season ticketholder and I have been for about 15 years,” he said. “But I used to go and watch AFC Bournemouth when I was a young boy and I have always followed their fortunes closely. I support both teams but in recent times I’ve seen more of Southampton than Bournemouth.

“The Christmas Day dip was for the Spartans and it was a fancy dress event. I thought what better to wear than my Southampton shirt? I didn’t think anything more about it.

“But I’ve a great deal of admiration for Eddie Howe and the way the team’s going forwards. I sincerely hope they get promotion this season.”