Brian Rice has confirmed that Jamie Hamilton and Lewis Smith were withdrawn from the Scotland Under-21 squad.
Both academy graduates were originally called-up to Scott Gemmell’s squad for the double-header against Northern Ireland , which is being played this week.
Attacking midfielder Smith only returned for Accies in the final weeks of the season after a serious hamstring injury.
Highly-regarded defender Hamilton sustained a minor injury and Rice revealed that he wanted to protect both players as they will be crucial players next season.
“They were both selected,” Rice admitted.
“Lewis had missed all the season with an injury, he’d just returned and we got him in really good condition so we felt as though we couldn’t take a chance with him.
“We didn’t want him getting injured by playing games as then he wouldn’t be ready for us.
“Jamie was selected but he had a niggle and we just can’t afford any injuries again.
“We need all our players to be fully firing for pre-season.
“We had that conversation with the Scotland staff and they understood the decision.”
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