With the new season kicking off every player in England is chomping at the bit to get back to action but there are three Irish players who definitely won't be playing when Wycombe travel to the Britannia Stadium to take on Stoke on Saturday.

Stoke's Clive Clarke and Graham Kavanagh are suspended for the game and Wycombe's Sean Devine has a mysterious injury.

Clarke and Kavanagh carry over suspensions from the end of the last campaign as does Peter Thorne. The three absentees could seriously weaken Stoke's chances of getting off to a win.

Kavanagh has been the inspiration for the team for the last couple of season and Thorne can be lethal in front of goal.

Clarke, who plays in defence for Ireland, has been utilised as a midfielder for Stoke and has made a big name for himself since he broke into the first team.

Wycombe will be just as worried though. Devine kept them in the Division the season before last after joining on loan and finished top scorer last season.

Boss Lawrie Sanchez has admitted that he's baffled by the knee injury currently troubling his top scorer.

The former Barnet ace looks certain to miss the first two months of the new campaign because of severe bruising to his bone, which is taking an age to heal.

Devine will have a second scan on the knee this week to try to get to the bottom of the problem once and for all. Sanchez claims that his striker is still no better than he was three months ago.

He explained: "He's got a bruised bone which is causing him discomfort when he bends his knee. He's walking around with a brace on his leg now which stops him bending it to give it a chance to heal."