How Portsmouth's kitman is coaching Norwich loanee into an impressive League One talent

Abu Kamara has revealed the coaching inspiration behind his impressive impact - Pompey kitman Shaun North.

The talented Norwich youngster’s stunning volleyed goal against Charlton marked his second in successive matches, taking his tally to four in 22 appearances so far on the south coast.

It has been a challenging learning curve for the 20-year-old attacker in his first spell away from Carrow Road, yet his decision to turn to North for valuable assistance is paying off handsomely.

The 61-year-old took over as kitman from the long-standing Kev McCormack in September 2021.

However, North possesses a highly-distinguished background in coaching, totalling two decades with the Blues’ Academy as well as working in the first-teams at the likes of Torquay, Bristol Rovers and Eastleigh.

Now the Uefa Pro Licence holder is lending a helping hand to Kamara in the form of extra training sessions to improve his game.

Kamara told The News: ‘I’m definitely improving and Shaun North has really helped me on the training ground.

‘I work on stuff like hold-up play. Instead of fighting my man, just actually focus on the ball so I can get a good touch and then feel where the man is. Things like that are helping me on the match-day and it’s making me a better player.

‘Shaun’s got all the coaching badges, so I went on to him about improving my hold-up play and, ever since, we've done little bits together after training.

‘Usually we’ll get a couple of balls and go to the left side, so it’s game relative. Then we’ll work on something.

‘For example, sometimes he’ll throw a couple of balls at awkward heights, spinning in the air, with someone behind my back. At first he told me to do what I normally would - and realised it could be improved.

‘I would look for the man, worrying about him and being distracted, so my touch wasn’t the greatest. So Shaun gave me the tip to focus on getting your body into the man and the ball.

‘Other times we’ve worked on different ways of taking on a man, creating a space, double movement.

‘Should I do something in the game which we’ve worked on, I always look for him afterwards for the high-fives. He’s always happy for me.’

North, who left an Academy coaching role to become kitman, has been instrumental in the development of a number of outstanding Pompey players.

They include Gary O’Neil, Matt Ritchie, Joel Ward, Asmir Begovic, Conor Chaplin and Jack Whatmough.

Kamara added: ‘I feel more comfortable on the left side because of Shaun, thanks to the scenarios we’ve gone through in terms of dribbling at someone on the left side.

‘Then defensively he tells me to bump my man so he doesn't get beyond me. Little stuff like that has added to my game to make me a nastier player to play against.’