Why Chesterfield pair were left out of squad against AFC Wimbledon in FA Cup

With teams being able to name nine substitutes in the FA Cup, some fans were wondering why Jack Clarke and George Cooper were not included.

Cooper, 26, whose summer arrival was met with lots of excitement, has only made two starts so far this season after struggling with niggling injuries and that was the reason why he was left out against the Dons.

Assistant manager Danny Webb told the DT: “He hurt his thigh in training on Friday morning so we decided not to bring him down.

“It was a thigh strain. He was going to be on the bench but it was not worth the risk coming down to be on the bench.”

Clarke’s situation is similar to Cooper’s in that he also has had a torrid time with injuries. The 23-year-old has made four starts this season, including three in a row in September, but he has not played since early October.

The midfielder showed his support for his teammates by travelling down to Wimbledon, but he was simply left out.

“We had 10 players brought down with us and we could only use nine of them,” Webb explained.

“The gaffer does not tend to use a goalie on the bench when there are five subs but when there are nine subs it is a bit of a silly idea not to put a goalie on the bench. We discussed that this morning with staff. If we had got an injury to Ross (Fitzsimons) everybody would have been asking why we did not name a goalie on the bench with nine subs and rightly so.

“Then we had four defenders on the bench who could replace the back four so that covers that, a couple in midfield with Timmy (Akinola) and Jez (Uchegbulam) and then a striker in Kabs.

“It is hard on Clarkey, but he was in there at the end cheering the boys.”

Webb also highlighted how two other Spireites players who had found it tough to get in the team were now playing regularly and performing well so Clarke could take inspiration from that.

“It was Bailey (Clements) and Tom Whelan a few weeks ago and sadly today it was Jack Clarke,” he said.

“He will learn from it and he understands that it is football and he will be better for it.

“You go through all the players and work out all the permutations that could happen, we have not got a crystal ball about what the game will hold.

“Whatever reason you give them players are gutted because they are disappointed not to be involved.

“It is a bit of a cliche but it is a squad game and he is a massive part of it, the gaffer is a big fan of his, we are all with how he plays. He has had some horrible injuries so this sadly is still part of his road to recovery.”

When asked if he could follow Michael Gyasi in going out on loan, Webb added: “I don’t know, I am not sure about that. With someone like Jack Clarke he is a bit of a unique player, we have not got many like him, similar to Coops I suppose in that they can make something out of nothing, but at the minute I would say he is massively part of the plans and probably won’t be looking to go on loan.”