Here's when Portsmouth Academy will return to training ahead of the new season
The young Blues haven’t been in action since March amid the Covid-19 outbreak.
Pompey Academy will return to training tomorrow.
The young Blues are set to start their preparations for the new season on the same day as Kenny Jackett’s side.
However, the youngsters have to follow the EFL’s return to training protocol amid the coronavirus crisis.
It means the youth team will begin by training in small groups before moving to non-contact and then contact training.
Pompey Academy’s season was terminated in May just three games into their Merit League One campaign.
The young Blues qualified the higher division after finishing third in the Youth Alliance south west division during the first half of the term.
A new start date for the academy’s 2020-21 season has yet to be decided, although it’s understood it’s something the EFL are currently working towards.
In the meantime, the youth team will relish a return to training, having been out of action since the middle of March.
The new intake of first-year scholars will begin their apprenticeships, albeit in a slightly different way to how they might have previously imagined.
The Blues’ Northern Irish trio – Eoin Teggart, Gerard Storey and Harry Anderson – are all set to fly over to the south coast to meet up with their team-mates.
They returned to Ulster to be with their families during the lockdown period.
Teggart recently signed third-year scholarship terms, along with Harry Kavanagh and Alfie Stanley.
Mark Kelly will be in charge of looking after the trio, after moving into the role player development manager having served as academy manager for six years.
He’ll also work with the first-team coaching staff and recruitment team, with his remit to develop players in the under-19 to under-23 age groups.
Jon Slater, head of education and player care, takes up the academy manager role on an interim basis.