Middleton out of Champions Trophy with broken toe

ENGLAND captain Barry Middleton has been ruled out of next week's ABN AMRO Champions Trophy after breaking his toe in a training match last week.

RULED OUT: Barry Middleton will miss out on the Champions Trophy after breaking his toe last week (England Hockey)

The 26-year-old, who looks set to move from Dutch club HGC to German outfit Der Club an der Alster for the coming season, was struck on the foot by the ball during an uncapped practice match against Spain at Lilleshall last week.

The injury will certainly see Middleton miss out on the Champions Trophy in Monchengladbach and Bowdon forward Alastair Brogdon has been called up as a replacement.

Brogdon, 22, scored England's first goal in their 4-3 bronze-medal match to the Netherlands at the World Cup in March.

Head coach Jason Lee will announce a replacement captain for the tournament once the squad arrives in Germany.

England's Champions Trophy campaign gets underway against Germany on Saturday before Spain are the opposition on Sunday.