Parkinson first considered bringing in Smith after Lynch injury
Phil Parkinson has revealed he first considered bringing ex-Ipswich Town defender Tommy Smith into the club when Joel Lynch suffered his injury against Portsmouth.
Lynch suffered concussion and a rib injury at the start of February, which has kept him out of the squad since, though he could return to the match day squad for the visit of Fleetwood Town on Tuesday evening.
Following the ankle injury to Bailey Wright last season, which could keep him out for theseason,Sunderlandmoved swiftlytoaddSmithonashortterm deal until the end of the season on Friday afternoon.
The New Zealand internationaldefenderspentadecade atIpswichandhasagoodpedigree in the Championship.
Parkinson, speaking following the 3-0 win over Bristol Rovers at the Stadium of Light, said:“WhenLynchygotinjured atPortsmouth,I’dspokenthen to Tommy’s agent, but then we realised that Lynch wasn’t too bad.
“Then with the news with Bailey, we got him up on the Thursday, had a chat and looked at him physically, he looked in great shape.
“Everything I had heard abouthim–hischaracter-was backed up with our chats with him.
“It is good to have another player in the building, we don’t want to leave ourselves short.
“He has had an U23 game at another club recently and has been training, he isn’t too far away.”
Parkinson also had a word of praise for owner Stewart Donald for helping bolster the squad.
Headded:“Itwasimportant tobringonein,Ifelt,theowner understands and he is singing from the same hymn sheet to make sure we are strong and havecoverinalldepartments.”
Alim Ozturk was given the nodtoreplaceWrightandParkinson described his performance as ‘flawless’.
Parkinson said: “Alim was flawless, he was great, did the right things at the right time.
“Therightdecisionsandhe typified the performance.”
Meanwhile, Parkinson believesDeclanJohnwillbeready whencalluponashecontinues to wait for his debut.
The Welsh international, signed on deadline day from Swansea City, is yet to feature for the Black Cats since penningahalf-seasonloanswitch.
Parkinson said a desire to ensureallareasarecoveredhas led to John’s omission.
“I feel for Declan, and I feel it's worth giving him a special mention,” he said.