One of the young players given his debut in Pompey's EFL Trophy clash with West Ham has told of his desire to play a part in the club's rise up the divisions.

Defender Harry Kavanagh was one of six academy stars who featured against a strong Hammers team, putting in a good shift in the 1-0 loss.

None of them could have friends and family there to see their big moment, of course, but Kavanagh had plenty tuning in on ifollow. Now he is hungry for further chances to impress.

Kavanagh told www.portsmouthfc.co.uk: 'It was a shame about the result and I don’t think I had my best game, but I was just over the moon to be playing. Making my debut is a dream come true. I feel like it’s been a long wait and now I want more, so I’ve got to keep pushing on.

'Mark Kelly told me on Monday that I’d be starting the game, although I wasn’t sure initially if it would be at right-back or midfield. But I wasn’t really bothered — I’d have played in goal. As long as I was on the pitch, then it didn’t matter.

'I kept looking at my phone throughout the day and was just counting down the minutes before I had to leave. My granddad would have loved to be at the game, as would my parents, my brothers and my girlfriend. They just had to watch on iFollow, which was a bit frustrating.

'Now I’ve got to keep my head down and continue working hard on the training ground — guys like Alex Bass and Ben Close have shown that chances will come if you’re good enough.

'One of my first away games as a fan was at Notts County. That was a great memory and this club’s on the rise, so I want to be a part of that.'

Follow @Pompey_Fans

Click here to sign up for an account and reserve your username! You can then post on the Forum and add your comments to articles