Stylish Wood marked the appointment of Jimmy Gilligan as their new manager by going nap against conference outfit Woking at Meadow Park on Tuesday evening.

The former Watford striker briefly wore Wood's colours eight years ago, and the delighted chairman, Danny Hunter, said: "Jimmy has been reserve coach at Nottingham Forest under David Platt, and has done some scouting for the England under-21 set-up, but it doesn't frighten me that he has come straight out of the top level of the pro game.

"As far as Wood goes, he knows the club and the locality, and is an excellent coach. We've offered Jim a package to run the football section here, and the situation will be reviewed in a year.

"It is a package that the club can afford, and I have told him he is under no pressure, so we can just go out and play. Wherever we are in the league, it doesn't matter just get the ball down and play."

Hunter revealed that Gilligan has emerged triumphant from a shortlist of two, the other being the former Ashford boss Tommy Sampson, who won the last FA Vase final at Wembley a year ago with Deal Town.

"Tom impressed me very much," said Hunter, who added that he had also interviewed Wealdstone boss Gordon Bartlett, ex-Heybridge manager Liam Cutbush and one of the biggest names in non-league management, Geoff Chapple, who won five FA Trophies in seven seasons, with both Woking and Kingstonian, and of whom Hunter remarked: "His CV is second to none." But how Chapple would have winced to see his old club taken apart by a rampant Wood, who began their demolition job after only eight minutes, when Brian Jones met Andre Delisser's deep cross from the left to steer the ball home at the far post, and piled on the agony right into the final seconds, as Junior Samuels expertly lobbed home a fifth.

Hunter divulged that he has himself been choosing the starting line-up since the departure, a fortnight ago, of Graham Roberts, with coaches Roger Goodhind and Bill Gibbs co-ordinating operations from the bench.

"Now Jimmy is in place I can retire undefeated!" he quipped.

Goodhind is expected to remain as a major figure in the Wood set-up, and he too was satisfied with another good day at the office, saying: "The lads did well tonight. They have all worked very hard and I was pleased for them."

Gilligan will inherit a club buoyed by another pre-season programme that has oozed promise.

Although the results went against them, the early run-outs against powerful opposition provided by Arsenal, Farnborough and Luton sowed the seeds of optimism. Hunter was quick to point out that his men have now scored 14 goals in their last three home friendlies.

"The playing squad is good enough now it wasn't, and we brought people in," he said.

"Bill, Roger and all the players have been superb there has been no crisis here. Robbo's departure three weeks before the start of the new season may have been seen by some people as a calamity, but it wasn't unexpected.

"There is a great competition for places now. I said to the players: 'Don't tell me you are a good player, go out and show me'."

The Wood side took Hunter at his word on Tuesday and, after Noel Imber had blocked efforts from Scott Steele and Charlie Griffin, the home side went two up in the 23rd minute. John Lawford latched onto a misplaced pass by Griffin to deck the Cards with one of his trademark sublime finishes.

Imber saved Delisser's blushes by denying Scott Huckerby, but the winger made amends on the half-hour by sweeping home number three, as Jones returned the earlier compliment and turned provider. Wood were producing some fantastic entertainment at this stage, and Neil Selby was thwarted by Tony Tucker's fingertips, as fine play by Delisser and Lawford set up the chance.Continued on page 70Woking missed Rob Hollingdale with an injured hamstring, but the former Wood wingback could only look on with embarrassment from the stand as substitute Gary Dixon netted a fourth in the 56th minute, blocking Tucker's attempted clearance and running the ball into the empty net. Although Barry Moore demonstrated that not everything was 'alright at the back' for Wood, as his free header glanced off the top of the bar and Imber later pushed aside a shot from him.

But these were isolated dangers provided by the Surrey side, whose chairman later confessed to his opposite number: "You played us off the pitch tonight."

Among all the euphoria, early exits from the action by skipper Garry Wotton and fullback Dave McDonald, with knocks, caused some concern, but this gave youth team prodigy Nilton Fernandes another opportunity to shine in exalted company. One cannot avoid the feeling at Meadow Park just now that the real stuff cannot come quick enough.

*WOOD: Imber, McDonald (Fernandes, 46), Engwell, Wotton (Dixon, 46), Harvey, Meah, Jones, Capone, Lawford (Selby, 72) (Samuels, 46), Delisser. Subs (not used): Mehmet, Bergamon, McCauley.

*Boreham Wood 5 Woking 0

Pre-season friendly