By Mark Currie, Daily Post
10 October 2005
FORMER
Wrexham defender Craig Morgan may get the call from John Toshack to help solve
Wales' defensive crisis against Azerbaijan on Wednesday.
Saturday's long-awaited 3-2 win over Northern Ireland on Saturday came at a
heavy price with West Ham's James Collins suffering a dislocated shoulder, while
bookings for fellow defenders Mark Delaney and David Partridge have ruled them
out of the Millennium Stadium clash.
To add to Welsh woes, both Coventry's Robert Page and Rob Edwards of Wolves are
also struggling with injury and are unlikely to figure in Toshack's plans as
Wales bid to end a largely disappointing campaign on a high note against the
bottom country in Group Six.
Although Collins' Upton Park team-mate Danny Gabbidon wil be back after serving
a one-match ban and Sunderland's Flintshire-born Danny Collins is also
available, the Wales boss hinted that under-21 internationals Morgan and Lee
Beevers could be promoted to the senior squad this morning.
Morgan, a regular with League One side MK Dons since his summer switch from the
Racecourse, has been absent from Brian Flynn's shadow squad for the last three
internationals after being sent off against Austria in March.
But he has now joined up with the party who returned to Cardiff at the weekend
following their 4-0 defeat in Germany on Friday night, as has Lincoln City
defender Beevers, who was also suspended for Friday night's game.
Toshack said: "Looking ahead to Wednesday's game, we've got Robert Page and
James Collins injured, Delaney and Partridge yellow-carded so Danny (Gabbidon)
could be sweeping on his own on Wednesday.
"James was injured as a result of a foul, one of a number committed during the
game, and I don't think either myself or Lawrie Sanchez was happy with the
referee's performance for one reason or another.
"But we'll have to wait and see. We've got a couple of days to think about it
and we'll look at the under-21 situation. Beevers and Morgan are back and are
both defenders."