SAM Allardyce will be without two key members of his flying start team when Wanderers put their unbeaten away record on the line at Gillingham next Friday night.

Mark Fish and Jussi Jaaskelainen have been called up for international duty while Per Frandsen and Gareth Farrelly have again been overlooked, ruling out any question of the Reebok boss asking for a postponement.

The match had been in doubt until yesterday afternoon when Denmark coach Morten Olsen and Republic of Ireland boss Mick McCarthy named their squads for the next round of World Cup qualifiers on October 7 and 11.

The Danes are away to Northern Ireland and home to Bulgaria while the Irish play Portugal away and Estonia in Dublin.

Jaasskelainen will be away for more than a week as Finland, who made an impressive start to their qualifying campaign in Group 9 with victory over Albania last month, travel to Greece then return to Helsinki for the big one - against England!

Fish, meanwhile, travels to South Africa for the prestige friendly against World and European Champions, France on the 7th.

Jaaskelainen's absence paves the way for Steve Banks to make his first League appearance of the season, coincidentally, against his former club. Ian Marshall, who filled in successfully at Grimsby when the South African and Mike Whitlow were injured, could get the nod at centre-back. New signing John Gope-Fenerpej will also be in the reckoning if Whitlow is still unfit.

Allardyce was at Craven Cottage last night to see Saturday's opponents, Fulham, beat Chesterfeld 4-0 in the Worthington Cup ... without NINE regular first teamers!