Forgotten men and first-teamers to feature as Portsmouth secure friendly with Premier League opposition after Bolton postponement

Missing a fixture this weekend following the postponement of Bolton’s visit through international call-ups, the Blues have fixed up an alternative game for their squad.

They are scheduled to travel to a top-flight team tomorrow for an afternoon kick-off in a behind-closed-doors encounter.

However, Danny Cowley is tight-lipped over the identity of the opponents.

Regardless, loan newcomer Josh Koroma and forgotten men Kieron Freeman and Ryan Tunnicliffe will all feature in the search for more match minutes.

Others pencilled in for important game time are Denver Hume, Jay Mingi, Zak Swanson, Reeco Hackett, Joe Pigott and Josh Oluwayemi.

Furthermore, Academy youngsters Adam Payce, Harvey Laidlaw and Brian Quarm will also be involved.

Cowley told The News: ‘It’s the opportunity for us to get minutes into players that need it.

‘We have eight or nine that are a little short of game time and some young players who will benefit as well.

‘Players need matches and whenever you can find time on the schedule to put game time in then we like to do that.

‘There’s Carabao Cup games, Papa John’s Trophy matches, we call them bounce games. It’s always our ambition for the squad to play a fixture every two weeks so they can get the necessary minutes.

‘Ultimately you are going to need them, so when you do call upon them they must be prepared and match-ready.

‘All of our training we try to replicate the game, but being able to play matches is important as well.’

Pompey’s training ground has this week been missing a number of players away on international duty.

These include Joe Morrell (Wales), Dane Scarlett (England Under-20s), Josh Griffiths (England Under-21s), Harry Jewitt-White (Wales Under-19s) and Alfie Bridgman (Malta Under-19s).

However, for those completing injury rehabilitation, such as Joe Rafferty, Michael Jacobs and Tom Lowey, the time has been beneficial for their recovery.

And Cowley insists the Blues have used the blank period productively as they eye their next match – a trip to Ipswich on October 1.

He added: ‘This first week is always a kind of self-improvement, which is quite a good way to explain it.

‘It’s a good chance to reflect on what we have done and where we are at – and to prioritise the tactical areas where we think we can get some improvement.

‘It also allows us to improve the players physically, so it has been a good week to date.’