The nightmare's over: Where it went wrong for luckless Portsmouth man now deservedly handed Bradford lifeline
The 26-year-old has suffered a ‘tough’ time at Fratton Park since his January 2024 arrival
His Pompey ties have another 10 months before they are finally severed, yet realistically the defender’s Fratton Park career is already over.
Tom McIntyre’s deadline day move to Bradford on a season-long loan effectively replaces the remainder of his Blues contract which expires next summer.
Providing he isn’t returned by the Bantams at January’s halfway point, the 26-year-old has played his last Pompey match, thereby ending a wretched - and hugely unlucky - south-coast stay.
‘A tough 18 months and not the way I had hoped things would go for a number of reasons,’ McIntyre posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, in response to Pompey’s official announcement of his Valley Parade switch on Monday.
He continued: ‘But I want to thank those Pompey fans who always backed me during my time at the club. All the best for the rest of the season.’
It was a typically classy message from the likeable former Reading man, who has endured a torrid time since his arrival in January 2024 for around £50,000.
Signed to secure Portsmouth promotion
Recruited to bolster ambitions of promotion to the Championship, he ended up totalling 14 appearances as little went right. Indeed, it would take a stony heart not to genuinely feel for McIntyre.
There was a broken left ankle and red card on his debut against Northampton and, although that dismissal was later rescinded upon appeal, his Pompey career never truly recovered. Certainly the timing of injuries was particularly cruel.
He played 54 minutes of the League One title-winning campaign, then sustained a hamstring tear while appearing as a substitute in their penultimate pre-season friendly in the summer of 2025.
McIntyre ended 2024-25 on loan at Charlton, where he failed to make their squad for a triumphant play-off campaign which saw Nathan Jones’ side promoted to the Championship at Wembley.
Tellingly, despite Pompey’s eagerness to offload him this summer, including not even handing him a shirt number, it was testament to the centre-half’s character that he continued to train with John Mousinho’s squad up until his departure.
Whereas fellow outcasts Abdoulaye Kamara and Matt Ritchie were persona non grata on the training pitch since returning for pre-season testing in June, the Blues were comfortable with McIntyre’s ongoing presence.
Although he attended the Slovakian training camp, injury kept McIntyre out of the early part of their friendly programme. By the time he returned, Mousinho was prioritising match minutes for those with a Fratton Park future.
As a consequence, his last appearance in a Blues shirt was the 2-0 FA Cup third-round defeat at League One Wycombe in January. That also represented Kamara’s final involvement.
High-flying Bradford will offer the chance of football once more, where he will challenge for the left-sided centre-half role in their back three.
Veteran Curtis Tilt is the man to dislodge from a side presently sitting third in League One, with Ciaran Kelly another rival for the role. Crucially, though, McIntyre finds himself wanted once more.
Although his Pompey fate was effectively sealed in December’s disastrous 4-0 defeat at Derby, there had been strong doubts in the preceding month, culminating in Marlon Pack converted into a centre-half to replace him.
Restricted to just 54 minutes during his opening nine months with the Blues, McIntyre returned in September 2024 to start 10 successive Championship games.
It can be argued he needed to be eased in following such a lengthy lay-off, yet duty called, and, in the midst of a centre-half injury crisis, he was urgently required. Unfortunately, his form subsequently petered out.
A Charlton lifeline
Following the signing of Rob Atkinson in January, McIntyre was loaned to a resurgent Charlton, who boasted one of the best defences in League One.
As a consequence, he struggled to feature, making just four starts, and didn’t appear in their final six matches during his time there, including the play-offs, where they beat Leyton Orient in the final.
Regardless, McIntyre achieved the distinction of successive League One promotions - yet it’s regular football he must have truly craved over the last 18 months.
Now hopefully Bradford will provide that along with a bit of luck. He certainly deserves a huge change of fortune.
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