Dickov unhappy at Feeney call

WARREN Feeney returned from international duty with a groin injury that forced him to miss the victory over Notts County.

And Athletic boss Paul Dickov was left unimpressed by Northern Ireland’s decision to field him in their 2-0 midweek friendly loss in Montenegro.

Feeney was introduced as a half-time replacement for Martin Paterson despite struggling in the build-up to the match and it is not known exactly how long he will now be out of action for.

“Warren went away with Northern Ireland on Monday,” said Dickov, who fielded another new striker partnership of Djeny Bembo-Leta and Oumare Tounkara in Feeney’s absence.

“Last Saturday (at Tranmere) was his first 90 minutes in a long time and his groins were a bit stiff.

“He told the people in Ireland he was struggling a little bit, but in a friendly for whatever reason Warren played for 45 minutes up front on his own.

“For me, with Djeny scoring in midweek I had it in the back of my mind (to rest Feeney) regardless of the injury.

“You have to look after players. It is common sense.

“But for some reason he played for his country with a sore groin.

“If it were me, especially at this time of the season I would rather he missed one game so he was alright for the next one.

“That didn’t happen.”