by Luke Cawdell

Defender Garry Richards is one of a number of Gillingham players facing a waiting game to see who the successor to Mark Stimson will be.

Richards’ contract expires this summer and he’s keen to see a replacement manager arrive soon so that his own future can be resolved.

An injury left the 23-year-old (pictured) sitting out the last few weeks of the season and he’s hoping that his time at the Gills isn’t at an end.

Richards said: "The chairman spoke to the boys who were out of contract and said he would speak to us again once the new manager was known.

"Hopefully that happens sooner rather than later. For myself it’s just a case of getting my ankle right, getting fit and then seeing what happens.

"Obviously I want to sort out my situation at Gillingham as soon as possible. I told the chairman that I’ve enjoyed playing at the club and hopefully we can come to some sort of agreement at Gillingham."

Stimson’s exit left more than a dozen players in limbo as no new contracts are being issued until a new manager is in place.

Richards was brought to the club by Stimson but acknowledged that his departure was part and parcel of the game.

"You never want to see other people out of a job but that happens and people move on," said Richards.

"It’s exactly the same for players. You just need to keep your head down, be professional and in football look after number one.

"I need to get myself fit firstly and hopefully the manager situation will be sorted out in a week or two. At the moment it’s a case of sitting and waiting.

"There are no guarantees in football. We’ll just have to wait and see what the new manager’s thoughts are and take it from there."

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