Pompey's academy dealt out a harsh lesson to Moneyfields in the FA Youth Cup tonight by beating them 12-0 at Fratton Park.
Ben Close scored four of the goals, Chad Field got two whilst Lewis Gill, Jack Whatmough, Bradley Tarbuck, Adam May, Harry Medway and Lewis Horsburgh also found the back of the net in the rout.
The half-time score was 7-0 as a crowd of 948 watched the youngsters put on a show. Whilst Whatmough is known for his blonde hair and appearances on the bench and Tarbuck has been touted to be on the fringes of the first team squad, it seems like Pompey fans may be keeping an eye on Close after his performance tonight.
Moneyfields may not have been the toughest opposition but it's good to see such a heavy win for the academy and goes to show the good job that Andy Awford is going as Pompey attempts to begin to establish its own reputation as a promising academy.
The result will be a little extra satisfying after the Moneyfields manager, Pete Seiden, made some rather interesting comments in the local news today. The "draw they didn't want" indeed...
The academy will either play Barton Rovers or Stevenage in the next round with the first team travelling to the latter on Saturday for their FA Cup tie.