Etter seier i sesongens to første kamper, har ikke Spencer Spurway og akademiet klart å følge opp den flotte sesongstarten.

AKADEMIET: 6-3 mot Forest Green Rovers og 4-0 mot Exeter var en strålende start for akademiet. Da de i tillegg så en av sine – Koby Mottoh – få sin førstelagsdebut så alt veldig bra ut i sesongstarten.

Akademiet fulgte også opp med å slå ut Gosport (etter straffesparkkonkurranse) i Hampshire Cup. Den kampen endte 3-3 etter ordinær spilletid. Gosport hadde ledet 3-0, men to mål av Koby Mottoh og ett av Connor May sørget for at det ble straffesparkkonkurranse. Mottoh scoret på det avgjørende straffesparket.

Mer cupsuksess ble det da Brentford ble slått 3-2 i 2. runde av Youth Alliance Cup. Koby Mottoh, Jayden Keteku og en prøvespiller scoret målene for Pompey.

LES OGSÅ: To tomålsscorere for akademiet

To tap på rad

Sesongens første tap kom da Cheltenham vant 2-1 i tredje serierunde av Youth Alliance League. Spencer Spurway scoret Pompeys mål.

«We were uncharacteristically poor with the ball in the attacking half for a lot of the game. Cheltenham set themselves up in quite a deep block and were very organised, so we found it difficult to break them down. They’d had three shots throughout the whole half and scored two of them, so it did feel like a hammer blow», kommenterte trener Sam Hudson.

Få dager senere ble det et nytt tap da Plymouth vant 2-0 i en kamp hvor Pompey fikk Sam Folarin skadet og Jack Fox utvist i åpningsminuttene.

«We made a strong start and were competing really well against tough opponents. But Sam was unfortunately injured early on and had to go off, which meant we lacked a focal point in attack. We didn’t have that target man to compete against Plymouth’s two very physical centre-backs and missed his presence. Jack was then sent off soon after for a challenge as the last man. Seeing it at the time and having watched the incident back, it’s probably the right decision», sa Hudson.

Henger med i cupen

Etter to tap på rad ble det endelig seier igjen da Pompeys unggutter vant 4-3 mot Newport. Pompeys mål ble scoret av Koby Mottoh, Harry Clout 2 og Dan Murray.

Sam Hudson: «Ultimately, we found a way to win the game, but that period early in the second half allowed our visitors back into it from nowhere. The boys need to be able to solve problems from defensive set-pieces because it’s been a recurring theme for us.

Despite working on it in training, the lads seem to be falling short in that area when we take to the pitch. We’ve come back from deficits this season and need to make sure that when we find ourselves ahead, we don’t switch off.”

Deretter var det cupkamp igjen og Pompey kom fra å ligge under til å vinne 2-1 mot Northampton i 4. runde av Youth Alliance Cup. Dermed er Pompey klare for den sørlige semifinalen i cupen. Pompeys mål ble scoret av Dan Murray og Zac Whitelock.

Sam Hudson: «We’re pleased to get through to the next round, although it was one of those clichéd games of two halves.

I går var det seriekamp igjen og Pompey så ut til å gå mot seier, men like før slutt utlignet Oxford slik at det endte 2-2.  Eli Grant og Koby Mottoh scoret Pompeys mål.

Sam Hudson: «It would have been harsh if we’d come away with nothing, although I don’t think we did enough to win the game, so it’s probably a fair result in the end. Neither side was able to dominate the ball well enough and the match really lacked quality throughout.

On a positive note, we were delighted that Mitch Aston made his debut for the first team against Gillingham earlier in the week. He’s worked really hard of late and so it was thoroughly deserved – it was great to see him take the challenge by the scruff of the note. It’s obviously a nice moment for him, but also for the academy because it shows we’re moving in the right direction.”

Dan Murray

Tabellen

Koby Mottoh.