Back home with a bang: Ex-Portsmouth man savours perfect start after following his heart to Gosport
The former Portsmouth season ticket holder spent last season with Eastleigh and Baffins
An ex-Pompey youngster savoured a dream debut after being led by his heart to return home.
Jack Fox had a trial at Aldershot lined up, while had also been attracting interest from the Hawks and Baffins Milton Rovers after leaving Eastleigh this summer.
However, the former Blues Academy captain instead opted to link up with home-town club Gosport for the next stage of his development.
Hailing from Leesland, Gosport, the 19-year-old grew up following Borough, as well as being a South Stand season ticket holder at Fratton Park.
And he couldn’t resist reuniting with his former Academy coach Danny Hollands to sign up at Privett Park and help boost the club’s promotion ambition this term.
Scored on his Gosport debut against Fareham
Fox had already featured three times as a triallist for Borough this summer before being unveiled as their latest signing this week.
And the versatile performer marked his first official outing as a Gosport player by scoring in Tuesday night’s friendly at Fareham.
Fox, operating in the centre of midfield, levelled in the first half at Cams Alders, before the visitors grabbed an 89th-minute winner to claim a 2-1 victory.
Also able to operate at right-back or centre-half, he suffered heartbreak when he was among all 11 second-year scholars released by Pompey in the summer of 2024.
However, he then joined Eastleigh’s Elite Development Squad at under-19s level, operating on a dual-registration to enable him to feature for other clubs.
He spent last season as a regular for Baffins, having impressed during three successful loan spells in 2023-24, and they were keen on a return.
Having been coached in Pompey’s Academy by Shaun North, the Hawks were also monitoring his availability, while a trial at National League Aldershot had been fixed up - but Fox opted for his home-town club.
‘It’s good playing for your home town’
‘Obviously I have always been in and around watching the club and I used to be at the club before I signed for Portsmouth when I was a kid.
‘My best memory of Gosport as a kid was when Sammy Igoe scored a winning penalty and I came onto the pitch and had it on my shoulders and stuff, it was in the newspaper. I was a kid and that’s what started getting me into football and when I realised that I liked football.
‘Other than Portsmouth, if I’ve got spare time I’ll come and watch Gosport, so it’s quite good playing for your home town, where you come from. There's a lot of people from the town and playing in front of your mates, it should be a good experience.’
Fox skippered Pompey’s under-18s in the Youth Alliance Cup final against Preston in April 2024 at Fratton Park, although they lost 3-1.