Barcham wants more now goal drought finally ended

The pacy winger scored Pompey’s first in the 2-2 draw at Mansfield when he swept home Jed Wallace’s right-wing pull-back.

For the 26-year-old it was a maiden goal for the club he joined from Scunthorpe in the summer.

It also represented the first time he had hit the back of the net since August 14, 2012, in a 5-5 Capital One Cup draw with Derby.

His barren spell in the league was even worse, not netting since a 4-1 win at Chesterfield in March 2012.

Now Barcham is finally back among the goals again to maintain a tremendously encouraging start to his Fratton Park career.

It follows scoring twice in pre-season, coming in friendlies against the Hawks and Bournemouth.

And for a player who has scored at least six times in the previous four campaigns until last season, he is targeting regular goals this term.

He said: ‘I wasn’t happy with my contribution last year, it was a difficult time for me.

‘The season before that I was on the scoresheet quite a lot for Scunthorpe so I am looking forward to the same this year.

‘I added goals to my game as a young player and, barring last season, it has always been that way for me.

‘Now I feel more comfortable and confident here and that (goals) will come back into my game.

‘From the start of the summer I felt quite comfortable here and it has come together quite nicely in pre-season with a few goals.

‘Now I’ve got off the mark and hopefully can go on a little run now,

‘The way I play I just don’t stay out wide, I can come inside and use my right foot and I like to chip in with a few goals so back myself to score a few.

‘On Saturday when the shot left my foot I did feel possibly it may have gone over the bar, but it went into the net so that was fine!

‘It was a great ball from Jed (Wallace) too, we have worked on that in training so for it to come together in a game is fantastic.

‘We have been saying that sometimes when all the big boys are in the box there is space on the outside for the pull back and he picked me out brilliantly

‘Perhaps I may even get a header this season, for a small guy I have not got a bad spring so we will see!’

In the 2011-12 campaign for Scunthorpe, he netted 10 times in all competitions.

The previous year, his last at Gillingham, he scored six goals, while in 2009-10 he got eight.

And in his first season with the Gills following a switch from Spurs, he registered nine times.

Yet curiously last year Barcham didn’t score again after the opening day of Scunthorpe’s season.

Still, he is now off the mark with Pompey and has a goal target in mind to reach.

He added: ‘I always set myself a goal tally – but I won’t share it!

‘I don’t really want to give what my target is, it is something I don’t like saying, but I have certainly set myself one and hopefully I will reach it.

‘I’m always the same, I frustrate so many people when they ask me what it is – but I will never tell!’