Jonny Parr is Town’s Mr Versatile and can perform in defence or midfield — but right now he is just grateful to be playing at all.
Niggling injuries have kept Parr on the sidelines for spells this season, meaning he has so far managed just two starts and a further two appearances from the bench in the Championship, so he is hoping he will stay fully fit for long enough to claim a regular first-team place.
Parr, whose starts came in the recent away defeats at Blackburn and Hull, was cast in a wide left role at the KC Stadium on Tuesday before giving way at half-time to Freddie Sears as Town, trailing 2-0 at the break, had no alternative but to adopt a more attacking approach in the second half.
He said: "It was a bit different for me but sometimes you just have to do your best in the role you are given and that’s what I did.
"I tried my best in that position and sometimes because of injuries and different aspects you need to put players in what may not be their preferred positions. We all do that for the team and give it our best shot.
"It has been a frustrating start to the season for me with a lot of small injuries that have had me in and out of the treatment room.
"But for the past four weeks or so it has been positive for me. I’ve been back training every day and been fit for every game. I’ve had a couple of games now and hopefully I’ll play a few more going forward and help the team to get some more points.
"Every player wants to play every game and it’s no different with me. I would like to play as much as possible and I’m happy to be back fit and competing for a place in the starting XI. Hopefully I’ll get my chance and we’ll win some games and have a good spell.”
Parr was asked if it adds to the pressure when a player who has not been featuring regularly is thrust into first team action, bearing in mind that player’s desire to impress sufficiently in order to remain a regular fixture in the starting XI.
He responded: "I don’t think there’s any more pressure than if you are playing every week. You still have to keep your place and do well. We know there is healthy competition around the team because we have a good squad with a lot of good players.
"If you’re playing you do your best to keep your place and if you’re not playing you are pushing to get back in there — that’s my mentality.
"Of course, we all want to play in every game because it’s no fun sitting on the bench, but we support the guys who are starting even if we are doing our very best to get in there ourselves.
"I’ve said all along that left-back is my preferred position — that’s where I have played most of my games over the last five or six years — but we’ll see where I play next time.
"I wasn’t disappointed when the manager signed Jonas Knudsen at the start of the season because we had sold Tyrone Mings and we needed another left-back.
"I was injured at the time so I don’t think the manager had much of a choice but to bring someone in. It’s up to me now because I’m fit, back in training and looking to get a place in the team.
"I had a little niggle in my thigh early in pre-season and when I came back a couple of times I didn’t quite get rid of it. But in the past few weeks it’s been really good so I’m training well and ready to play.”