Portsmouth boss John Mousinho issues challenge to young pretenders after eye-catching audition
They young duo have been Pompey’s centre-half pairing for the last two matches
It’s a fledgling Pompey centre-half partnership averaging 22 years of age and totalling 13 career Football League starts.
And John Mousinho has challenged Ibane Bowat and Hayden Matthews to ensure their part-time presence becomes a permanent arrangement.
The duo have both been handed a run in the Blues’ side of late, following injury to fellow central defenders Conor Shaughnessy (hamstring), Josh Knight (back) and Regan Poole.
At the age of 23, Bowat made his Football League debut at Birmingham last month, having previously played regular football in Holland and Austria during loan spells.
As for Matthews, since joining Pompey from Sydney FC in January, he has made seven Championship starts, with injury and competition forcing him out of the first-team.
The pair lined-up against Blackburn in Saturday’s 2-1 victory, with Bowat getting the winning goal, and, should the injury situation not change, will likely remain in place at Derby on Saturday.
Portsmouth boss: ‘That’s a young pairing’
Mousinho told The News: ‘I am delighted for Ibane scoring against Blackburn, he attacks the ball really well, we just need some more.
‘He’s had such a tough time here. He probably had a tough spell in the first half, dealing with two very, very good centre-forwards, and then grew into the game.
‘It’s a big challenge for Ibane to try to keep his place in the side, but he has done himself a load of favours after Saturday.
‘That’s a young pairing, they came in and did well at Swansea and then did very well against Blackburn too.
‘Regan at centre-half has come out with that injury, so it’s important for these players to come in and perform, trying to keep their shirts so they can get that consistency.
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‘It’s hard when you chop and change a team and that has been part of the issue across the season, we have looked for different solutions for every combination.
‘Across the park we haven’t had anyone with a settled position. Doz (Andre Dozzell) has probably been our most consistent, but, even in the middle of the park, we’ve looked to chop and change that.’
Started the last two matches together
Bowat and Matthews have started the last two matches together, while were also in Mousinho’s line up for the abandoned game against Charlton.
Certainly they are likely to be split up once Poole comes back from injury, with his ankle issue not as bad as first feared and having returned to light training on grass on Saturday.
The other alternative is Knight, who had started 10 of the previous 12 matches until being sidelined by a back problem in the aftermath of last month’s home defeat to Bristol City.
‘It’s nowhere near as bad as we first thought’
Mousinho added: ‘Regan had turned his ankle and you need to wait until the swelling goes down before assessing whether there is significant ligament damage or not, but it’s only minor.
‘It’s nowhere near as bad as we first thought. It swelled up very badly initially, but has settled down. He was out on the grass with us on Saturday morning, not kicking a ball yet, just running.
‘He’s in a good spot and 50/50 for the Derby game. If not, he’ll be back after Christmas.’