Soccer: Hay again absent from Knights

Captain Danny Hay will be left cooling his heels at home when the New Zealand Knights play A-League soccer rivals Queensland in Brisbane on Thursday.

Hay was not included in the squad of 15 today named for the match.

Hay was omitted from the team for their 2-3 loss to Melbourne in Auckland last Saturday, and it was reported his future with the club was in doubt.

Neither the bottom-placed Knights nor Hay have publicly explained his absence.

Manager John Adshead did say, however, that Hay had said he was "disappointed with the team's performance and a lot of aspects at the club".

Adshead today said the decision to name an unchanged squad was a relatively easy one given his team's improved performance when losing 2-3 to Melbourne.

"While disappointed not to get a result on Saturday I was pleased with the job overall and the way the players reacted to discussions during the week and the pressure of chasing a second win," Adshead said.

"They stood up for themselves and for the club, giving a clear indication of their desire to play once again this week before we take a three-week break into Christmas."

The team leave for Brisbane tomorrow.

New Zealand Knights squad: Danny Milosevic, Darren Bazeley, Ben Collett, Sean Devine, Zenon Caravella, Jeremy Brockie, Noah Hickey, Frank van Eijs, Kris Bright, Simon Yeo, Naoki Imaya, John Tambouras, Cole Tinkler, Glen Moss, Jeremy Christie.

- NZPA