Bristol Rovers have been dealt another defensive blow with right-back Luca Hoole having been called up by the Wales Under-21 squad.
Joey Barton’s options at the back are severely limited at present due to injuries to James Connolly, James Gibbons and Lewis Gibson, while Alfie Kilgour and Bobby Thomas are suspended for one match each following their red cards at Ipswich Town.
Hoole should revert to centre-back this Saturday against Lincoln City, with his partner likely to be one of midfielders Glenn Whelan or Paul Coutts, unless Gibson or the versatile Josh Grant can make injury returns ahead of schedule.
Kilgour and Thomas will fortunately return for next Saturday’s home encounter against Accrington Stanley, after serving their respective bans, but Hoole’s anticipated departure now leaves Barton’s options on the right side of defence limited.
Newport-born Hoole will likely leave to join up with the Wales Under-21 squad at the start of next week ahead of their friendly against Austria on Tuesday, September 27 in Vienna. Although it remains to be seen if Rovers can seek some kind of special dispensation to enable him to play against Accrington given Wales’ fixture isn’t until three days later.
The 20-year-old has been named in the squad for a second time, and the first under new head coach Matthew Jones who replaced Paul Bodin in July but there is precedent for him potentially remaining with Rovers, albeit causing potential tension with the Welsh FA.
Last November, on-loan Crystal Palace forward Sion Spence rejected a call-up from the Wales U21 squad with Bodin claiming he was put "under pressure" by Barton to remain at Rovers. The 21-year-old then scored the winner in a FA Cup first round tie against Oxford United during that period.
In March, on-loan Newcastle midfielder Elliot Anderson also remained with the Gas, despite being called up by Scotland U21s. That international window also saw Hoole and Connolly stay in north Bristol despite Bodin's desire to bring them into the Dragons' U21 set-up.
If Hoole does go, Harry Anderson would normally be capable of standing in as a right-back, as he’s done previously, but the 25-year-old has a suspected broken toe. Barton could potentially revert to a back three, but it’s not an ideal situation as the Rovers manager continues to juggle his defensive resources.
The injuries and unavailability of players at such a regular rate has also meant the Gas have been unable to fully develop the requisite team cohesion and chemistry at the back, a key asset of theirs in the second half of last season when Connor Taylor and Connolly were mainstays at the back.
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