KEITH Gillespie's hopes of an emotional return to international duty were today in jeopardy after the Rovers winger picked up a freak injury in his sleep.

Gillespie returned to the Northern Ireland fold earlier this week after surviving one of the deepest lows of his professional career.

But his hopes of appearing in the North's World Cup qualifier with the Czech Republic at Windsor Park tomorrow are now in serious doubt after the 26-year-old woke up yesterday morning complaining of a sore neck.

"At the moment we don't how he's going to be so the next 24 hours are going to be very important," said Northern Ireland boss Sammy McIlroy.

"The physio has put some ice on his neck and given him some anti-inflammatory tablets. So it's now a case of wait and see."

Gillespie won his last cap for the North 11 months ago against Hungary but then lost his place after falling out of favour with Ewood chief Graeme Souness.

However, the Rovers boss has since had a change of heart and decided to offer the player a second chance.

And his form over the last month has subsequently earned him a place back in the international fold with a call-up for the qualifying games against the Czechs and Bulgaria. McIlroy's men need to win both games to boost their chances of qualifying from group 3. And Gillespie is desperate to throw his weight behind the cause, provided he gets the nod from the North's medical staff.

"It's going to be very difficult because they're two really tough games," said Gillespie.

"We know a lot about the Czech Republic and they've got to be among the top five countries in the world. So we'll be going into the game as underdogs.

"But when we play against the bigger teams, we usually play a bit better than we do against the so-called minnows. So, hopefully, that will be the case again tomorrow."

If Gillespie is ruled out, Rovers team-mate Damien Johnson would move one place further up the pecking order with a likely place on the bench.

Meanwhile, Republic of Ireland international Jeff Kenna is hoping to follow Gillespie's lead and relaunch his own career with Tranmere Rovers.

Kenna swapped Rovers' promotion battle for a relegation scrap with the Merseysiders after agreeing to a one-month loan deal earlier this week.

And, after failing to hold down a regular place at Ewood, he's now relishing the prospect of helping his new club beat the drop. "I know Kevin Sheedy well from my time with the Republic so I was eager to come and play for him," said Kenna, who made his debut in Rovers' 2-1 defeat at Gillingham on Tuesday night.

"The lads are up for the fight, there are 10 games to go, and if we stick together and produce more performances like we did on Tuesday then we'll win more than we'll lose.

"I've been in a position like this before and I don't see why we can't get out of it. There are still a lot of points available."

Young midfielder Steven Flitcroft also left Ewood yesterday when Stockport County made a pre-deadline swoop for the player.

County have taken over the 19-year-old's contract until the end of the season after he failed to win a place in Blackburn's first team squad alongside his older brother, Garry.

Four times World Superbike champion Carl Fogarty will make a guest appearance on 'Soccer AM' tomorrow morning with Rovers one of the subjects up for discussion.