Boss Kieran McKenna says he’s yet to decide whether the Blues would ask for the Plymouth match to be postponed if Town receive a third international call with Greg Leigh and Wes Burns having respectively been included in the Jamaica and Wales squads announced earlier this week.

The Blues are due to face the Pilgrims at Home Park in a live-on-Sky top-of-the-table clash a week on Sunday but with League One clubs entitled to ask for matches to be called off if they have three players named in international squads.

McKenna admits Leigh and Burns would be a loss if the Blues play while they're away: “They will be, of course. Two players who are involved in pretty much every game at the moment.

“Wes usually starting and playing a really important role for the team, but Greg having a massive impact in games when he comes off the bench and also when he’s started.

“It’ll be two losses but it’s really important for us that the boys progress in their careers as well. Individually, the better the team does, the better chance they have to develop and the better that they develop individually, the better the team does.

“We’re pleased and proud for the two of them and it will be a good opportunity and, of course, we knew from the start of the season that we would potentially lose some players to internationals over the course of the year and we’re well prepared for that.”

As reported earlier in the week, skipper Sam Morsy has been named in the provisional Egypt squad for their home friendlies against Niger and Liberia, but with Town yet to learn whether the 31-year-old will be in the final party.

Morsy has been named in provisional squads on a number of occasions since joining Town but has always subsequently been cut from the final group.

The midfielder has won seven Egypt caps with his last appearance as a sub against Eswatini in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in November 2018.

“We’re still waiting on Sam, he’s on the list that we’ve had from Egypt but we haven’t had official confirmation yet whether he will be in the final squad, so that’s a possibility that we’re waiting on,” McKenna confirmed.

If Morsy or someone else is called up, would he postpone the Plymouth match? “We would have to look at that as a club. It’s ‘if’s’ at the moment.

“Until we have any certainty through, we are not in a position to make that decision. We have not had any concrete discussions on that until we see what the outcome is with the international squads.”

On-loan Arsenal striker Tyreece John-Jules has won two England U21 caps although isn't a regular member of the squad.

Panutche Camara’s Guinea-Bissau don’t have a fixture during the September international break, while the recent signing from Argyle is not yet fully fit in any case.

Fellow new recruit Gassan Ahadme's Morocco U23s also don't have a game during this break.

McKenna believes Lee Evans's form this season is worthy of a call but the 28-year-old wasn’t named alongside Burns in the Wales squad.

“With regards to Lee Evans, I think everyone who’s watched us [has seen how he’s playing] and I’ve spoken very clearly on how highly I rate his performances,” McKenna continued.

“Both when I first arrived, I thought he got himself into an excellent groove but I think so far this season he’s taken that to another level.

“I think his physical condition now is absolutely fantastic. He’s worked so hard over the summer to get himself to that condition and I think he’s been an outstanding performer in our team and in the league so far this year.

“I understand international managers have a difficult job and have a squad to select, so they’ll do what they think is right for the team and rightfully so, so no issues with that at all.

“And Lee will just continue to work very hard, as he has been, and perform as high as he can, and I know he has got that aspiration down the line and he’s still of a good age and still improving. I think his focus at the moment just needs to be continuing to play very well for Ipswich and after that, you can’t control a lot of things in football and he will just have to take what comes his way.”

Evans has won four senior Welsh caps, the most recent his first start in a friendly against Trinidad and Tobago back in March 2019.

If the Plymouth game does go ahead, then the Pilgrims will be without on-loan Aston Villa midfielder Finn Azaz, who has been called up by the Republic of Ireland U21s.

Photo: TWTD

Marcus added 15:27 - Sep 15 Hands up if you Googled Eswatini.
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Generic added 16:50 - Sep 15 Every year I try and go to this one and every year something stops me. 🤣 I'll just add it to my collection of unused Plymouth tickets 🤦‍♂️
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philpott2 added 09:07 - Sep 16 In response to Marcus. A resounding hands down for me....I was brought up there, Swaziland as it was called back then. At the time my old man was the one and only golf professional in the country. 😀 And despite it being 40 odd years ago, not sure how many of you have messed about with that geoguesser game, but I could find my way around and recognise/ remember parts quite clearly (things don't change much in that part of the world, obviously).

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philpott2 added 09:11 - Sep 16 Having just bought tickets for the rearranged Cambridge game, it seems the club are now considering postponing a POPR match, a bit frustrating, especially as these rearranged Saturday games always end up as a midweek one. Which is nowhere near as convenient or easy to work around. 😞
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philpott2 added 09:15 - Sep 16 My bad...its Portsmouth, not Plymouth, included in that. Doh!
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kiwiblue added 15:54 - Sep 16 lived in Botswana for three years and Swaziland was one of the highlights of one of our trips in the holidays .Especially the Kings marriage procession and a rafting trip.
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