Kofi Balmer and Lee Bonis have been called in to the Northern Ireland squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League games against Belarus and Bulgaria.
Motherwell defender Balmer and ADO Den Haag striker Bonis have been included in senior squads before, however both players have yet to make their senior international debuts.
Balmer (24) signed for Scottish Premiership side Motherwell in the summer from Crystal Palace.
He began his senior career in the Irish League with Ballymena United in 2017 before switching to Larne at the start of the 2021-22 season.
The central defender joined Palace in the summer of 2022 from Larne. He mainly featured for the London-based Premier League side’s Under-21 team before going out on loan to League One side Port Vale and then League Two outfit AFC Wimbledon during the 2023-24 season.
In June this year he agreed a two-year deal with Motherwell, with an option for a further year.
Balmer previously earned 20 caps for Northern Ireland’s Under-21 side and made five appearances for the U19s.
Bonis starred for reigning NIFL Premiership champions Larne for just over two seasons before making the switch to the Netherlands back in the summer.
The striker began his senior career with hometown club Portadown in 2019 before moving to Larne in the second half of 2021-22. He helped Larne secure back-to-back league titles in 2022-23 and 2023-24 before signing a two-year contract with Eerste Divisie (second tier) side ADO Den Haag in August.
He was not involved in the Northern Ireland set-up at youth level. He was called up to the senior squad for the first time last year and was an unused substitute in Euro 2024 qualifiers against Denmark and Kazakhstan.
Last Friday Bonis scored a hat-trick for his new team in a 5-1 away success at TOP Oss. He has now netted four goals in seven games for ADO Den Haag.
The call-ups for Balmer and Bonis follow Mansfield Town goalkeeper Christy Pym’s first inclusion in the senior squad yesterday.
All three have been drafted into the senior men’s panel by Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill following the withdrawal of goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell and defender Daniel Ballard due to injury.
The now 26-strong Northern Ireland squad are training at Stockport County’s training ground at Carrington in Greater Manchester once again today ahead of the UEFA Nations League Group C3 games against Belarus and Bulgaria.
The squad are due to jet out to Hungary tomorrow (Thursday) to prepare for the game against Belarus at the neutral ZTE Arena in Zalaegerszeg on Saturday at 19.45 BST.
After that they will be facing the Bulgarians at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park in Belfast next Tuesday (15 October). And tickets for that game(7.45pm) are still available at irishfa.com/tickets.
