Gilbody abandons Wales post

Martin Gilbody admitted feeling "disillusioned, disappointed and disenchanted," after his resignination as manager of Wales.

Martin Gilbody admitted feeling "disillusioned, disappointed and disenchanted," after his resignination as manager of Wales.

The departure, which also saw the Welsh coach David Bunyan leave his post, ended Gilbody's 18-year involvement with the squad. Both men had become unhappy with developments in Welsh hockey.

However, Gilbody, the highly respected manager of the English League champions Cannock, has other things on his mind this weekend when his team play a rescheduled National League fixture against Southgate, which they must complete without the services of their three Sydney Olympians, Ben Sharpe, Craig Barnham and Michael Johnson.

Their absence and the departure of four seasoned internationals during the summer means a young Cannock side will take the field this afternoon at Trent Park.

Southgate have also had their fair share of departures during the close season, including the Australians Todd Williams, Max Diamond and Grant Smith, while the England captain, Bill Waugh, has moved on to Surbiton.

With no room for a third non-EU player at Surbiton, South African international Gregg Clark, who was at Surey club during the 1998-99 season, has re-signed for Southgate along with his compatriot Steve Evans. Scottish internationals Gavin Markham and Graham Joyce are two more new faces to the Middlesex side.