International tour:The cold and rain gave way to warm sunshine yesterday in New Jersey where things finally started to look a bit brighter for Ireland manager Steve Staunton. For a start, he and his players got to trade the astro-turf at Montclair University, where the football pitches had been waterlogged over the weekend, for the lush, green grass of a Rutgers lacrosse stadium.

Afterwards, Staunton was in positive mood, hailing the form of the newcomers, dismissing the criticism of Cork City striker Roy O'Donovan back home and playing down his disappointment over the non-appearance of John O'Shea whose back problem, he insisted, he had been aware of for a number of weeks.

The manager spread the praise evenly but did give special mention to Darren Potter, the former Liverpool midfielder, who, he suggested, might have been more established in his squad by now had it not been for Lee Carsley's impressive return to international action late last year.

"He's done very well," observed Staunton. "He's had a great season. He's just unfortunate that Lee's comeback went so well."

Potter (22) views his presence here as representing a welcome endorsement of his decision to give up on establishing himself at Liverpool and move instead to Wolves in pursuit of regular first-team football. He has gotten that in considerable quantities over the course of the campaign just finished, something that has allowed him to start fulfilling the potential that so many saw in him as a teenager.

"It's been a good season for me and the club although it's ended on a disappointing note (with last week's defeat by West Brom in the promotion play-offs). And it's definitely been the longest, that's for sure. I hadn't played for as long in a season or anything like that amount of games but it's all been good. Obviously it's what you want to be doing."

Leaving Anfield was difficult, he admits, particularly after he had appeared to be making headway a couple of years ago during a spell that included a handful of outings in the Champions League, including one in the quarters. The club, as it happens, went on to win the competition but Potter came away without a medal despite having contributed to the success.

"I was a little bit reluctant to go, all right," he says. "Nobody really wants to leave a club like Liverpool but I was getting on for 22 and I needed go get out and play games.

"There's nine new faces (in the US) and I'm one of them, it's a big opportunity to show what we can do."

Given the restricted alternatives available when it comes to ball-winning central midfielders, Potter, it seems, is likely to be amongst the more fortunate of the nine when it comes to time spent on the pitch over the course of the two games.

If there is one area of the team in which Staunton does have options here this week, it is attack with six forwards, including Notre Dame's Joe Lapira, participating in yesterday morning's training session.

The late inclusion of the 20-year-old American will hardly have cheered up O'Donovan who has been averaging a goal a game for City since late last season and who revealed his frustration at not being called up after Friday night's defeat of Bohemians, in which he once again scored.

The Cork-born striker expressed dismay that of the B team that played against Scotland late last year only he and Stephen McPhail have been overlooked on this occasion. "Well he doesn't know what he's talking about," countered Staunton yesterday, "because I talked with Stephen and if he hadn't been going in for an operation, he'd have been here." That should certainly cheer O'Donovan up.

As for the loss of O'Shea, whose withdrawal left Kevin Kilbane as the only player in this panel with a tally of caps that extends into double figures, Staunton insisted it had not come as much of a surprise.

"I knew John had a problem for the last two months," he said. "It was an ongoing problem. It may not have been that serious but if you're only getting through games and then being rested during the week it's difficult. So when United called after the cup final I didn't have a problem with it."