Tommy Smith has spoken of his surprise at being excluded from the New Zealand squad for their friendly against South Korea in Seoul next Tuesday.
The game coincides with Smith’s 25th birthday, which he will spend at home in Suffolk rather in the Far East after All Whites’ head coach Anthony Hudson, son of former Chelsea, Arsenal and England midfielder Alan Hudson, decided to leave him out in order to check on other potential candidates. Blues loan striker Chris Wood has made the trip.
Smith, who previously decided on a break from the international scene before a change of heart, made it clear the decision was not his own request.
He said: "The manager knows that I’m available for selection, but he told me that they’ve found a couple of new players that he wants to see in action.
"He didn’t tell me he wasn’t going to pick me but I never ruled myself out of selection. Was I shocked? Yes, to be honest. I enjoy representing my country, but on the flip side of that it does give me a chance to rest and recuperate for a vital part of the season for Ipswich.
"I’ve had a chat with the new head coach in the past and, to be fair, he has said that there might be times when he might not call me up. This is obviously one of those occasions.”
Town boss Mick McCarthy doubts Smith’s omission was related to his defender’s form: "Sometimes I think it’s tactical with international managers. I don’t think they need to see Tommy.
"I don’t think he’s been left out because they don’t want him there. Maybe they’re looking at somebody else, they’ve got somebody else that can play. That’s my understanding of it.
"I don’t think it’s due to his performances. Whilst being disappointed, he might take it as a feather in his cap that actually, they don’t need to see him.
"When there’s a game that comes up and it’s a qualifier he’ll be back in the team. You can look at it two ways, I prefer to look at it in the positive one.”
Town’s Norwegian full-back or midfielder Jonny Parr has also been left out of his nation’s squad for their European Championships qualifier in Croatia on Saturday, somewhat controversially.
Former Liverpool defender John Arne Riise was amongst a number of ex-players and pundits to express their surprise that the 26-year-old had been snubbed by manager Per-Mathias Høgmo.
"[He’s done well for Town] but whoever their manager is he picks it and he’s probably single-minded like me and ‘foxtrot oscar’ to all the other opinions!” McCarthy added.