Toshack to herald new era for Wales
John Toshack will herald a new Wales era when he names his first squad since being appointed in November for the friendly against Hungary.
Toshack’s squad is expected to include four uncapped players, two of whom were playing in the Nationwide Conference last season.
Toshack took over when Mark Hughes quit to manage Blackburn, and the February 9 friendly at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium will bridge an 11-year gap for the former Liverpool star who was in charge of Wales for one match back in 1994 against Norway.
Since starting his second term as Wales boss, Toshack has been searching for new, younger players to freshen up what was becoming an ageing squad under Hughes.
Of the four likely new faces in the squad only one was born in Wales.
Swansea full-back Sam Ricketts, Motherwell centre-back David Partridge, Sunderland’s Danny Collins and West Ham’s midfielder Gavin Williams can all expect to be in the senior squad when it is unveiled by Toshack tomorrow.
And of that quartet, only West Ham’s Williams – who has made just six Coca-Cola Championship appearances since his £250,000 move from Yeovil in December – is from the principality, having been born in Merthyr Tydfil.
The two who will make the dramatic step up from Conference football to possible international duty inside a year are Ricketts and Collins, who both also played for England’s semi-pro side last term.
Ricketts, formerly with Oxford United, was with the now defunct Telford United last season while Collins was an ever-present in Chester’s Conference title-winning side.
Ricketts, born in Aylesbury, qualifies because he has a Welsh grandmother. He has made a big impact at Swansea this term and can play either full-back role.
Collins, who moved to Sunderland for £140,000 earlier in the season, has played only eight senior games but has made a big impression at the Stadium of Light and has been covering for the injured Gary Breen.
Born in Chester, he was brought up in North Wales and has a Welsh father, and was discovered by Chester boss Ian Rush playing in the Welsh League.
Collins said: “Everything has happened so fast for me since leaving Chester, I have had a few games now in Sunderland’s first team and I am delighted to be on John Toshack’s thoughts and can’t wait to get involved if I am named in the squad.”
Partridge’s arrival in the Wales senior squad will come nine years after he made his only Wales Under-21 appearance against Turkey at Ebbw Vale.
Since then the Westminster-born centre-back has moved to Motherwell where he has impressed in the Bank of Scotland Premier League. He also qualifies because he has a Welsh father.
The night before the Hungary game, Wales Under-21s play an important UEFA Championship qualifier with Germany at Wrexham, where there will be four uncapped players.
Toshack and his new under-21 chief Bryan Flynn want to put out a strong side against the Germans and aim to include Plymouth’s Peter Gilbert – who could have expected a senior call-up – as well as Cardiff’s James Collins, already a senior international.
Toshack is likely to be without Aston Villa’s Mark Delaney for the Hungary match.
The defender, who is tipped to be named Wales’ new captain following the international retirement of Gary Speed, has a cruciate knee problem and faces at least a month out of action.
Manchester City’s full-back Ben Thatcher – who must serve a three-match ban in the next World Cup qualifiers against Austria, twice, and England – will not be named against Hungary to allow Toshack to experiment and find a replacement left-back.
Thatcher, who today saw a move to Fulham fall through, will form an important part of Toshack’s defence in the future.
Wales are likely to name only two goalkeepers in veteran Paul Jones and Burnley’s Danny Coyne.
Toshack has a serious problem soon in this department with Jones and Mark Crossley coming to the end of their international careers.
Jones, 38 in April, is on loan at Watford and still producing excellent form while Crossley, at 36, is Fulham’s second choice ’keeper.
Coyne cannot get his place back in the Burnley side from Brian Jensen following injury but is seen by Toshack as a future Wales number one.
Norwich’s goalkeeper Darren Ward is recovering from knee surgery while Spurs’ Simon Davies is only just back from long-term injury.
Toshack is expected to stick with the bulk of Hughes’ squad, which will be minus Speed, Andy Melville, Nathan Blake, Andy Johnson and Mark Pembridge who have all retired from international football.