Republic of Ireland under-19 manager Sean McCaffrey faces a selection headache as he prepares the team to face Switzerland in the European Championship mini-qualifying tournament tomorrow.
Ireland opened the four team tournament with a loss to England last night and with only one country qualifying for this summer's finals in Lithuania, three points against the Swiss is a must.
However, McCaffrey is likely to be without four key players for the game at Richmond Park. Glenn Whelan (Manchester City), Stephen Bradley (Arsenal), Killian Brennan (Peterborough United) and Willo Flood (Manchester City) are all having treatment and are rated doubtful for the second game of the tournament.
Both Whelan and Bradley have damaged ankles, Brennan has a knee problem and Flood has a dead leg which is both swollen and sore.
"All four are having treatment and we can only wait and see how they recover," says manager McCaffrey. "If we were to lose four players like these it would be a great blow to the team as a whole. We have replacements, yes, like Neil McCafferty and Richie Ryan, who are good, classy players but it would be a huge loss if all four casualties were forced to drop out."
McCaffrey also expressed his disappointment that his charges failed to take anything away from the match last night, a tie which the Irish dominated for long periods.
"The deserved so much from Monday's game that it was a big disappointment for us all to lose," McCaffrey says. "But the lads have to get that winning mentality; they have to get the knowledge of how to win. And once they obtain that, and it would come about by just getting a victory, I do feel they will begin to get the kind of results they deserve."
Switzerland lost their opening game 2-1 to Slovenia at Belfield yesterday afternoon. Slovenia play England tomorrow at Dalymount Park with a 2.30 p.m. kick off.
Republic of Ireland squad: Paul Murphy (Leicester City), Kevin Deery (Derry City), Killian Brennan (Peterborough United), Tim Clancy (Millwall), John Fitzgerald (Blackburn Rovers), Glenn Whelan (Manchester City), Willo Flood (Manchester City), Stephen Bradley (Arsenal), Stephen Elliott (Manchester City), Paul Keegan (Ledds United), Neil McCafferty (Charlton Athletic), Richie Ryan (Sunderland), Danny Byrne (Manchester United), Pierre Ennis (Aston Villa), Patrick Mulvihill (Longford Town), Mark Quigley (Millwall), John Flood (Bray Wanderers), Mark Yeates (Tottenham Hotspur), Henry McStay (Leeds United), Kieran Sharkey (Shelbourne), Alan McCormack (Preston North End), Tim Dittmer (Liverpool).