Duncan Barkes

Yeah, it's tricky, isn't it, for a club like Pompey because we've got some youngsters coming through who clearly have the potential to play first-team football at championship level, certainly League One or Two level, but they're not there yet.

They're not old enough, strong enough, big enough, experienced enough.

They're not battle-hardened enough.

And the only way that they can improve that facet of themselves, which is to be at least as old as they are, preferably a little bit older than they are, if you know what I mean, is by getting them playing week in, week out in a challenging footballing environment.

So you've got to choose that environment very carefully.

And of course, the manager of the club that you lend your player to has to be complicit in...

In the overall plan for the player, a player who is going to play regularly for that club, but then the club will be able to accommodate that player leaving whenever at the end of the season.

If the manager changes and you have a manager who doesn't want to go along with the deal that was struck between the club that's borrowing someone such as Harry Clout or...

and the club that is lending someone like Harry Clout, then obviously you've got to think again.

And that's what Pompey have done.

So it's simply a matter of being reactive as well as proactive.

So 9 out of 10, Pompey, for looking after Harry Clout.

Who knows?

It has to be said that it's understandable that there is speculation amongst some fans on social media.

What they're saying is that the Australian, they're calling it an experiment, doesn't seem to be working.

And we are deprived of, have been deprived of the services of our Australian contingent for a disproportionately large amount of time.

There's no question about that.

However, different reasons in each of the cases, entirely authentic injuries which have to be dealt with.

There is the possibility that the players themselves have been trying too hard in training, were trying too hard when they were on the pitch.

or just found the whole business of stepping up a grade into the championship from wherever they were playing in Australia is just a bit of a bridge too far, especially when you're young and your system is still quite...