WORK to improve Gillingham’s problem pitch is well underway with the removal of a top inch of grass and soil. A new drainage system should be installed by the end of this month prior to the laying of new turf.

The Gillingham End terrace at Priestfield has been demolished ready for the construction of a new, temporary stand which will be ready for the start of the Nationwide League season on Saturday, August 9.

The new structure, which will not have a roof, will eventually make way for the proposed £1.5 million Brian Moore Stand.

Meanwhile, former Gillingham winger Jim Corbett is among the 527 players released on free transfers in recent days. Corbett cost Premier League Blackburn £525,000 when he left Priestfield in May, 1998 but failed to make a first team appearance.

Last season he spent a month on loan with Division 3 Darlington. Leo Fortune-West, another ex-Gill, has been released by Cardiff City.