netcfg had support for configuring gateway information (such as the default gateway). It is more than a bit esoteric to figure out what is in the /etc/sysconfig files. This needs to be added to this package.
This is now done on a per device with the Default Gateway entry. Additionally you can add static routes on the routing tab. That way you can now even have multiple default routes (for whatever reason). Hope this clarifies this a little. So you can still set a default route, you just have to do it at the device level (and not globaly). Read ya, Phil