Yorke faces club versus country dilemma.
By: Nick Alexander (Sunderland FC).
Roy Keane will ask Dwight Yorke to miss two Trinidad and Tobago internationals early next month.
The Sunderland striker has been called into the latest Soca Warriors squad, for friendlies against Nicaragua and Panama in Trinidad.
But Black Cats boss Keane wants his former Manchester United team-mate to concentrate on life at Sunderland.
If Yorke goes, he faces two long flights and will be away from Wearside for nearly a fortnight, just at a time when he is starting to find his feet at Sunderland.
Keane said: "I've had a chat with Dwight and I'm due to speak with him again. I'll never begrudge a player the chance to play for his country, but it's getting the balance right.
"He's come to a new club here, he's looking to settle in and he's still looking for that bit of match sharpness.
"Dwight has said that it's a transitional period over there and that they are looking to use his experience. I haven't got a problem with that, but I think he's got to be fair to everyone and fair to himself.
"If he's going over there, playing two friendly matches and looking to come back and play for us, I think it's unrealistic.
"A lot of managers have to deal with this scenario. Dwight's not going to be around in the next World Cup, so he's got to be fair to himself. I'll be chatting to him and we'll see what is going to happen."
Yorke is due to leave for Trinidad directly after Sunderland's game against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday, linking up with his international team-mates in Port of Spain next Tuesday.
They play Nicaragua at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain on October 7 followed by a game against Panama four days later.
Yorke would then face a transatlantic flight - a 5,000-mile trip - arriving back in Sunderland the day before they go to Preston on October 14.
The former Manchester United striker, who played in the last World Cup in Germany, met Trinidad & Tobago coach Wim Rijsbergen last week to discuss his international future.
Rijsbergen said: "Dwight is of course trying to get back in the picture with Sunderland and he will try to help out as best as he can for the next two years.
"He was very positive and one of his goals is to play a part in the Gold Cup next year. Sooner or later he has to make a decision."
Yorke will now sit down with Keane before a decision is made about next week and his international future.
Yorke: Don't try to copy Keane.
By: Lewis Rutledge (Sky Sport).
Dwight Yorke has warned his Sunderland team-mates to tone down their aggression on the pitch. Since Roy Keane took over as manager at The Stadium of Light, Sunderland's results have improved dramatically, and a more physical approach has been integrated.
However, in the 3-1 defeat to Ipswich on Saturday, The Black Cats picked up five bookings - including a red card for Ross Wallace.
Yorke believes that some individuals are trying to copy the combative style Keane was famous for in his playing days, and he has urged them to keep their discipline.
"Just because Roy Keane is our manager, it does not mean we have to go tearing around the pitch looking for scraps all over the place," said Yorke.
"There was a lot of `handbag' stuff out there (against Ipswich) and there was no need for it. We should concentrate on playing our game.
"I think people get caught up in that stuff a bit too much.
"We have got an edge to our game, and I am sure the fans will love seeing players willing to scrap and fight, but you can do it too much.
"The more people just concentrate on playing their game, rather than trying to copy what the gaffer was all about, the better."
The defeat at Portman Road was Keane's first as a manager, and Yorke admits it was a big blow for everyone at Sunderland.
But the Trinidad & Tobago international is determined for The Black Cats to bounce back and continue their climb up the table.
"It is a massive disappointment. We felt we could go on an unbeaten run, and everyone has been on a high the last couple of weeks," Yorke told the club's official website.
"This is a bit of a reality check. We know that, with Roy being here, everyone wants to beat Sunderland - and we have to realise that and act accordingly.
"Everyone wants to get one over him because not many managed to get one over him when he was a player. They are determined to beat him.
"It is how we respond to what has happened that will interest the manager now. We have to beat Sheffield Wednesday and put this right."
Yorke can be an inspiration.
By: Sunderland Echo.
Sunderland made half-a-dozen new signings yesterday on the busiest transfer day in the club's history. But the one signing which has captured the imagination more than the other five put together is that of ex-Manchester United marksman Dwight Yorke.
The Trinidad and Tobago striker may be 34 now and have lost the pace which once made him a world class goalscorer.
But he remains a figure of world renown and for Sunderland fans starved in recent years of star names, Yorke's is a name that they can wear with pride on their shirts.
Nor will he be trading on former glories either, Yorke has been the star player in Australia's A league with Sydney FC and the club's manager Terry Butcher admitted he's 'our marquee player', recognising his star quality and big game temperament.
The signing of Yorke had all the more impact because it was such an unexpected approach.
The ex-Villa and Man United frontman had dropped off the radar since joining Sydney last July but new Sunderland boss Roy Keane had not forgotten about his former team-mate.
And he was also aware that while Yorke wasn't unhappy Down Under, he had admitted that he missed the competitiveness and sense of importance of fixtures in the English game.
The English game had largely forgotten about the player, despite his appearances for Trinidad and Tobago in this summer's World Cup.
So it was a major surprise when news broke yesterday that the club were pursuing the player from across the globe.
And it has been a superb bit of business to get a talismanic figure such as Yorke for just £200,000.
Keane will believe he can have the same sort of inspirational influence on the Sunderland dressing room as Niall Quinn had hoped Kevin Phillips would have had, had he been able to return to Wearside.
What remains to be seen is where Yorke will be deployed in the Sunderland set-up.
He was a prolific striker, for Manchester United in particular, scoring 47 goals in 96 appearances betwen 1998 and 2002.
But in recent seasons he has proven himself a more than capable central midfielder with the ability to win the ball and set up attacks.
With Sunderland having bought two central midfielders yesterday though in the shape of Graham Kavanagh and Liam Miller, adding to the likes of Dean Whitehead, Arnau and Grant Leadbitter, the temptation may be to ask him to play up front again.
Yorke's paciest days are long behind him but facing Championship defences is not the same as taking on Champions League rearguards and the new signing might show that his greatest gift to Sunderland will be the goals that will lift them up the league table.
