Town defender Tommy Smith could miss next week’s internationals due to his back injury, according to reports in New Zealand. Smith is due to play in the home friendlies with Honduras and Paraguay, matches which have in part been arranged to celebrate the All Whites’ success at last summer’s World Cup.
Smith was an unused sub for Town during Tuesday’s game at Reading having been a regular for the Blues in the Championship up to that point.
Prior to Saturday’s match at Scunthorpe, boss Roy Keane revealed that the 20-year-old had been suffering with a problem for a while: "Tommy Smith has had an issue with his back for the last couple of months, so it was ideal to give him a rest [against Millwall].”
According to the reports, a decision on whether Smith will travel will be made after Town's match against Leeds on Saturday.
The All-Whites take on Honduras in Auckland on Saturday 9th October and Paraguay in Wellington on Tuesday 12th October.
Smith, who played in all three of New Zealand’s games in South Africa, has been capped eight times at full level.
Meanwhile, academy pair Conor O’Donnell and Nicolay Schrøder could face one another today in a European U17 Championships qualifying group game in Malta. O’Donnell is with the Republic of Ireland squad and Schrøder with Norway.
Neither Town player has been involved in their sides’ opening two matches, but with both teams having already secured their place to the elite qualifying stage after two wins, the Irish keeper and Norwegian centre-half may get their chance.
After today's game the pair will share a flight back to England for Town's U18 match against Chelsea at Playford Road on Saturday morning.