Portsmouth club's '˜twinning' attitude propels them into a league of its own

Three sets of identical twins play for Meon Milton Primus under-13s.

Harry and Joseph Osgood, Ben and Ryan Jakeman and Taylor and Tyler Gaffney, all 12, often make it difficult for manager, Grant Howlett, to tell them apart because of their similar looks.

And there is even another twin too, Adam Amos – although his sister does not play.

The unique team has had a successful start to the season, including an 8-0 victory over Hayling St Andrews.

The squad’s first set of twins were Harry and Joseph, who joined when they were eight.

Joseph, who is the team’s striker, said: ‘It feels a bit weird seeing more twins out there. It’s like seeing doubles of each other.

‘But it’s good. It does help us because when we get out on the pitch we can just tell where each other are going to be and we can work together.’

His mum Charlotte Osgood, 35, of Angerstein Road, North End, said it was a bond shared on and off the pitch.

‘The boys are all incredibly good friends outside of the team.

‘They all hang out together,’ said the mum-of-three.

She added that having twins was a ‘shock’ at first but that it is good to be able to chat to parents of the other twins.

‘Other teams are just shocked when they see the twins all coming out,’ she said.

‘Sometimes when one scores a goal we’re all screaming “Which twin scored, which twin scored?”.

‘But it’s strange – the twins always seem to know who is who.’

Wendy Jakeman, mum of Ben and Ryan, can always be seen supporting her lads on the touchline. ‘I go to all the matches,’ she said.

‘I love it, especially since Ryan joined. The boys love it too and it’s nice to see them getting outside and keeping fit.’

The youngsters put sibling rivalries aside on the pitch and dream of one day turning their hobby into a career.

‘The boys have been into football from a very young age,’ Charlotte added.

‘They dream of being professional footballers.’

Manager Grant, of North End, said: ‘I struggle to tell the difference between the twins sometimes and have to go by the colour of their boots.’

The team, which is named 
after Pompey legend Linvoy, is top of 
the league, with their next match on Sunday against Botley Village Rhinos.