Swansea captain withdraws from international contention
I'm sure this will be greeted with grins from lots of Swansea supporters, but it leaves Chris Coleman a remarkable ten players short for what was already hardly a world-beating Wales squad.
"Cookie", once of Swansea City himself, could be forgiven for thinking the footballing gods are conspiring against him, but Ash needs rest and ultimately this will be good for him. He never misses games, so if he's had to sit out the last few it's clearly a fairly serious problem, and playing through the pain barrier is ultimately something that should be avoided at all costs. Hopefully he'll come back fit and raring to go after the international break.
I'm sure the man himself is gutted, but with Wales's chances of qualifying already all but mathematically impossible there's no way he should risk it, and I'm glad he's ruled out the possibility of featuring for Wales if he's not fully fit. Hurry up and get fit as quick as you can Ash, boy do we miss you!