TROY PARROTT HELPED fill an empty Stade Saputo with some noise as he rattled the woodwork and rippled the net time after time during Ireland’s attacking drills on Thursday lunchtime. The Dubliner will be heavily relied on for the foreseeable future.

Before the session had begun, Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson revealed that Evan Ferguson is expected to be out of action for significantly longer than expected, his troublesome ankle injury putting this autumn’s Nations League schedule in jeopardy.

Ferguson underwent surgery in early March on his left ankle after returning from Roma to Brighton the previous month. He’d originally suffered the injury in late January in freak fashion when he tried to avoid a pitch-side photographer in the dying stages of a Europa League clash with Stuttgart.

According to his national team manger, Ferguson is now expected to be sidelined for the guts of eight months with the issue after Hallgrimsson outlined an updated timeline of September or potentially October before the frontman is fully fit again.

“No, I don’t think so,” said the manager when asked if Ferguson could return for pre-season training with Brighton.

“I spoke to him last time two or three weeks ago, and it was more damage than the doctor thought in the beginning. So probably now he [will be] fully fit sometime in September or October but you never know. Hopefully it will be sooner.”

That time frame would put Ireland’s hectic four-game Nations League window in serious doubt.

Ferguson has been blighted by ankle injuries, slowing a meteoric rise for the former Bohemians man.

While he has scored eight times in his 26 caps for Ireland, Ferguson is now being advised to take extra time this time around in the hope that he can truly solve the issue.

“I think for him and everyone, it would be wise to take this slowly and just leave it in the past instead of trying to rush it,” added Hallgrimsson.

Ireland face World Cup co-hosts Canada here on Friday night and went through a hectic training session at the home of CF Montreal.

Hallgrimsson’s squad was completed when Benfica winger Jaden Umeh belatedly joined his teammates having sat his latest Leaving Certificate exam earlier in the morning.

The 18-year-old took English Paper II then made his way to training in the hope of pushing for cap number two on Friday night.

Hallgrimsson has been impressed with everything he has seen so far from Umeh.

“Some of the other lads find it strange to have a birth year this late in the group but [Jaden’s] been really, really good. He needs to take three exams during the camp, two of them in the middle of the night, this one in the morning,” added the Icelander.

With so many rookies in the squad he brought across the Atlantic, Hallgrimsson said he is very likely to lean on his seasoned players from the off against Jesse Marsch’s side.

Nathan Collins, Jake O’Brien and Seamus Coleman were all pointed to as being key to a camp which features seven League of Ireland talents.

“It was so good to have players like Jake, Seamus, Nathan, all of these senior players, for the younger ones coming in,” added Hallgrimsson.

“They need to learn from those who have the experience. It would have been not as strong a camp for them if it was only players without caps.”