What's rare is wonderful; and Will Smallbone is certainly enjoying an extended spell away from the trials and tribulations of club football, as he works towards being involved in the Republic of Ireland’s upcoming Euro 2024 qualifying double-header.
The Southampton midfielder is currently in Turkey embedded in Stephen Kenny’s squad, who are enjoying a nine-day, hot-weather training camp ahead of their away game against Greece in Athens next week.
And while Smallbone is very much a novice at this level, he already has some happy moments in the senior green jersey to look back on as he attempts to impress the manager and become an integral part of the remainder of the campaign.
The 23-year-old made his senior debut in the March international friendly against Latvia, and to add to the occasion, the playmaking midfielder ended the game with a win and the player of the match award following an excellent first outing for his country.
"It's quite rare on the international stage to get such a long time together," said Smallbone, speaking on a media call from the Turkish training camp on Wednesday.
"We have a lot of people coming in from different clubs and it's important that we all get back to understanding each other and training with each other. So this 10 or 11 days will put us in good stead going into the game in Greece.
"It's such a long break for us from the end of the Championship season to the game, but the lads here with Ireland have bene fantastic with us, giving us plans to go away over the start of the off-season and then we had the camp in Bristol, which I thought was very beneficial for me and for everyone else to get back up to speed."
Smallbone came through the Southampton academy and broke into the first team in 2020, gaining valuable Premier League experience, however, he ruptured his ACL and was also diagnosed with alopecia in 2021, and as a result, regular first team football proved hard to come by at St Mary’s.
Subsequently, Smallbone spent last season on loan at Stoke City, and while it was a step down the levels for the south-coast prospect, it proved a step-up in terms of experience for the creative midfielder who enjoyed a season of consistent, competitive action with The Potters.
"The stuff that’s happened to me over the last few years I wouldn’t wish upon anyone," said Smallbone.
"I’ve shown resilience and a lot of character to know that I can take on anything that is thrown at me.
"It's been great for me," he said, regarding the loan move to Stoke. "It was something I really needed going into last season, I needed to play a lot of games, coming off the back of a few injuries that I had. It was important to make sure I had regular football and thankfully I achieved that.
"It was a very good decision to drop down to the Championship. It’s something I’d advise if players are struggling or need to get out to experience for first-team football. It put me in good stead coming into the Ireland camp in March for my debut. I’d highly recommend it."
The end-of-season break with Ireland has also allowed Smallbone to put his club future on hold as he will return to Southampton for pre-season, however, the club were relegated and with a change of manager expected
So it’s a case of wait and see for Smallbone, who is happy to leave such decisions on the long finger as he enjoys the end of season action with Ireland.
"I don’t think anything has been announced yet so I’m not sure what’s going on down there," said Smallbone, when asked about the managerial situation back at Southampton.
"I’m not thinking too much about my future while I’m out here with Ireland. There’s big games with Ireland to play in and that’s my focus.
"I’ll wait for Southampton to appoint a manager, like everyone else, have a conversation with him to see where he sees me.
"I’m happy to concentrate on Ireland and worry about that when back, but next season is very important for me to carry on playing football."
Looking ahead to those final two games of the season, Smallbone is keen to be involved and by his own admission, he is happy to play in a range of positions whether as a number ten or playing further back centrally, while he also has played on the right side of the formation.
"I think that will come in the next few days," Smallbone replied, when asked about the plan for the Greece game. "It’s early days in this camp in general, we still have over a week to the game, so I am sure we will nail it down properly in the next week or so.
"I obviously wouldn't know just yet, but I'll want to be involved in whatever form that is. I will just be doing my best in training over the next week to try and put myself in the best opportunity to be involved, the same as anyone in the squad.
"Everyone knows the importance of the game," he added. "I think there’s going to be a lot of Irish fans coming out so that will be brilliant to spur us on. We know how big the game is and we will be doing everything to go out there and win."
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