International round-up: Find out how our Saints got on

We had five players in action during the international break and all of them picked up valuable minutes and experience. 

Fran Franczak was on duty with Poland U18s at an international tournament in Croatia, while Makenzie Kirk and Lewis Neilson were in Euro qualifiers action with Northern Ireland U21s and Scotland U21s respectively. 

Striker Adama Sidibeh met up with The Gambia squad for Africa Cup of Nations qualifers and defender Andre Raymond was in the Trinidad and Tobago squad for two Concacaf Nations League qualifiers. 

You can find out how they all got on below: 

FRAN FRANCZAK (Poland U18s)

Youth academy graduate Fran made his Poland under-18 debut in a very impressive 2-1 international friendly tournament win against Croatia last Wednesday.

Fran, who was straight in from the start and playing at right wing-back, almost opened the scoring with just 10 seconds on the clock after a neat early move.

He would end up playing more than an hour and could be very pleased – and proud – with how he performed.

The second game of the friendly international tournament was held on Saturday where Fran came off the bench in a 1-0 victory against the United Arab Emirates U20s.

The tournament then concluded on Tuesday with a game against South Korea U18s which Poland convincingly won 7-2.

MAKENZIE KIRK (Northern Ireland U21s)

Makenzie was called-up to the Northern Ireland U21s squad for a Euro qualifiers double-header and they picked up an impressive point against England.

Our striker came off the bench in the 64th minute of the match and played his part as Tommy Wright’s side battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

Northern Ireland were back in action on Tuesday evening and were edged out 2-1 by Ukraine. Makenzie was not in the squad for this game.

LEWIS NEILSON (Scotland U21s)

Lewis was in from the start for Scotland U21s narrow defeat against Spain at Tynecastle Park on Friday evening.

The Scots produced a solid first half performance but then fell behind just shy of the hour mark. They weren’t behind for long, however, with Dire Mebude reacting quickest to level.

With both teams battling for the upper hand, Spain managed to find the winner with 20 minutes remaining. Lewis played the full game in the 2-1 loss. 

Lewis and Scotland U21s were the back in Euro qualifier action on Tuesday evening with an away game against Malta.

It was a very successful evening for the Scots who ran out 5-0 winners – and Lewis rounded off the scoring with a finish from close range.

ADAMA SIDIBEH (The Gambia)

Adama was again selected to represent The Gambia during this latest international break and he picked up more minutes for his country.

Taking part in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, our striker came off the bench in the opener against Comoros.

The Gambia had fallen behind in the game before Musa Barrow levelled proceedings just shy of the half-time whistle. Despite pushing for a winner, the game finished all-square.

In the second match of the international break, Adama was again named on the bench before being introduced as a late substitute in a 2-1 defeat against Tunisia.

ANDRE RAYMOND (Trinidad and Tobago)

Andre was again proud to earn selection to the Trinidad and Tobago national team and travelled for Concacaf Nations League qualifiers.

The first game was away against Honduras and Andre was in from the start on the left side of the defence. A familiar face in former Saints midfielder Dan Phillips was also in the squad.

It would prove to be a disappointing result for Trinidad, with Honduras claiming a comfortable 4-0 victory.

Trinidad returned to home soil for match number two against French Guiana and Andre was listed among the substitutes. It ended 0-0 at the Dwight Yorke Stadium.