'Humble' ex-Portsmouth favourite's meteoric rise continues as he inspires Swansea's south Wales derby win over Cardiff

But now Jamal Lowe is a key player in a Swansea side firmly in the race to reach the Premier League.

And his fine double inspired the Swans to a 2-0 victory in the south Wales derby against Cardiff on Saturday.

Lowe’s meteoric rise through the football pyramid has been well documented.

Joining Pompey from Hampton & Richmond Borough in January 2017, the winger scored 30 goals in 119 games at Fratton Park.

Having helped the Blues to the League Two title and Checkatrade Trophy glory, he left for Wigan for a fee of around £2.5m in July 2019.

After an initial slow start, the ex-Barnet man finished the 2019-20 season with six goals in 48 games, with the Latics finishing 13th in the Championship.

But with Wigan relegated after being hit with a 12-point deduction for entering administration, Lowe was in demand during last summer’s transfer window.

The winger was sold to Swansea for just £800,000 – meaning Pompey missed out on a sell-on clause windfall.

Steve Cooper’s men were beaten play-off semi-finalists last term and were again expected to challenge for promotion.

Indeed, they’re doing that, with Lowe playing a crucial role.

In one of Swansea’s biggest games of the season, it was the 26-year-old who produced the magic to sink rivals Cardiff.

He opened the scoring on six minutes before producing a wonderful finish with the outside of the boot in the 72nd minute.

The win kept the Swans third in the table and only a point outside the automatic promotion places.

And Steve Cooper heaped praise on the impact Lowe has had, having netted four goals in 18 games.

Speaking after the game, the Swansea boss said: 'He has been a great addition to the team. He is such a humble lad an all he wants to do is work hard.

‘He can have good days like today in terms of the threat he can be.

‘He's made us a better team and did it by scoring a couple of goals.’