Town centre-half Tommy Smith held a “clear the air” meeting with his New Zealand team-mates when he joined up with the All Whites squad earlier this week ahead of Friday’s friendly in China and next Wednesday’s match in Thailand.
In the summer, Smith, 24, decided to take a year off international football which at the time he said was to concentrate on his domestic career, although he now admits he had become frustrated with the way the All Whites were managed towards the end of former head coach Ricki Herbert’s time in charge, citing "organisational issues”.
"They were doing their job to the best of their ability,” Smith told Stuff.co.nz. "I don't want to criticise them too much. I got on well with them as people and we had some happy times as well."
He says he was advised not to raise his concerns publicly when he announced his break: "I bit my tongue and bided my time and I'd rather leave it at that."
But Smith is now firmly back in the fold after a recent meeting at Playford Road with new manager Anthony Hudson, whose plans for the future impressed the defender.
However, he knew not all his team-mates were pleased with his decision to take a break and he sought to build bridges with senior players on his arrival in China.
"[I knew] some people weren't very happy when I said I wanted to take 12 months out,” he added.
"I wanted to clear the air because I don't want people to be holding grudges and to not understand the finer details."
He believes they now understand his position and he’ll similarly speak with captain Winston Reid and senior keeper Glen Moss, who have both missed the trip, at a later date.
With West Ham’s Reid absent, Smith could even skipper the All Whites in China with Hudson yet to announce his captain.
Smith is one of the leading candidates with Hudson describing him as "a leader, on and off the pitch”, who brings "a real level of professionalism and quality” to the squad.
The Blues defender, who has been capped 27 times, scoring two international goals, has worn the armband on a number of occasions before, most notably in last year’s World Cup play-off games against Mexico, and says it would be a privilege to do so again: "[It was a] great honour every time I've done it in the past.”