David Cuffley Teenage midfielder Korey Smith has earned praise from manager Paul Lambert for lasting the pace in League One this season.Smith has missed only three league games since Lambert arrived as manager in August, and his energy has confounded his boss, who believed he would need a rest at some stage.

David Cuffley

Teenage midfielder Korey Smith has earned praise from manager Paul Lambert for lasting the pace in League One this season.

Smith has missed only three league games since Lambert arrived as manager in August, and his energy has confounded his boss, who believed he would need a rest at some stage.

The 19-year-old was one of the star performers in last week's 3-0 win over Yeovil and has made 34 senior appearances in less than 12 months since his first team debut.

“Sometimes you can wait for someone to get a bit tired and sometimes you get the one-off that doesn't happen,” said Lambert.

“He seems to be one of the lads that has kept on going and his form has never really dipped. The only time I've left him out is because of his hamstring.

“His form has never come down to a level where I thought he needed a rest.”

Smith was left out of the starting line-up in the home game against Southend last month because of an injury niggle, but came off the bench to help City turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 win.

He also scored three vital goals - finding the net in home and away victories over Wycombe and the win at Southend.