TONY Mount has spoken of his deep regret over Newport's decision to dispense with Joe Roach, the club's first-team coach and director of their Academy of Football.

Roach, who gave up a career as Army director of football to take up a full-time job at St George's Park six months ago, has been made redundant to help ease tight finances at the Isle of Wight club.

Losing ten home games due to wet-weather postponements has had a crippling effect on revenue at the Dr Martens League Eastern Division club. There have also been further complications over funding the Academy between Newport and the Isle of Wight College, who are working together to combine top-class coaching with full-time education.

"I can't say much on that score at the moment, but we've been paying Joey's wages and our chairman Bill Manuel decided that overheads had to be looked at," said general manager/ team boss Mount.

"The decision was made above me. While I would love to have kept Joe here at least working at first-team level, the chairman felt it wasn't feasible. "I feel gutted about it, but I don't pay the wages.

"It's not just Joey who's gone. We've had to make someone from the social side of the club redundant too."

Roach, formerly with Gloucester, Fleet and Havant, joined Newport in August 1999 and his outstanding coaching ability made him the natural choice to take command of the Academy when it was launched last summer.

"I'd go as far as to say that Joey is the best guy I've ever worked with in football," said Mount.

"His man-management and ability to get his ideas across to players is second to none. I've been in awe of some of his coaching sessions and have learned so much from him.

"The players, myself and everyone associated with Newport is going to miss him."

As for the future of the Academy, Mount would only divulge: "We have a number of teething problems to iron out - one of them being finance. I'd like to think that both the club and the college want to keep it going, but it's up in the air at the moment."

lContractors will begin dismantling services in the South End Stand at Bournemouth's Dean Court on Monday.

The bulldozers will then move in at the beginning of February to demolition the stand.

Cherries director Tony Swaisland said: "We have worked long and hard to get to this point."

Swaisland, coordinating Cherries' new stadium project, added: "But there is still much to be done and it is absolutely vital that we continue the excellent fundraising effort."