Moments of quality Portsmouth will be hoping winger can consistenly reproduce as attention turns to real test against Shrewsbury

He's widely regarded as one of the most naturally-gifted players in the Pompey squad by his team-mates.
Marcus Harness scores his first goal of the match. Picture: Joe PeplerMarcus Harness scores his first goal of the match. Picture: Joe Pepler
Marcus Harness scores his first goal of the match. Picture: Joe Pepler

And the Blues will be hoping Marcus Harness can reproduce the moments of quality he did against Colchester when the League One campaign starts against Shrewsbury on Saturday.

The winger was Pompey's standout performer in the 2-0 win over the U's in the EFL Trophy.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Albeit, this was against League Two opposition and Kenny Jackett's men will face tougher opposition in the third tier.

Yet even League One defenders will struggle to nullify Harness' threat if he's able to repeat his exploits on a consistent basis like he did against the U's.

After arriving from Burton last summer, Harness began his Blues career in blistering form.

A thigh injury sustained at Blackpool halted his impetus and he never quite recovered after that.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

That's not to say Harness was lacklustre when he did come back from injury. Far from it, as he ended the campaign with nine goals.

But his displays at the beginning of the term were a tantalising glimpse of what he's capable of.

And judging by his performance against Colchester, he’s continuing to improve and far from peaked.

His two goals in as many minutes were as cool as you'd like. Both were true right-footed finishes, giving the keeper no chance on each occasion.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But let's not forget about his trickery and guile in the second period that could have had Pompey well out of sight had Curtis and Evans finished chances after being teed-up by Harness.

There were also some encouraging link-ups with Callum Johnson, handed his debut after arriving from Accrington, and the Blues will be hoping that rapport can blossom.

Fellow-debutant Cameron Pring also grew into the game well, with one marauding run and cross that Harness couldn't quite connect with.

Indeed, this performance certainly helps Pompey put their woeful defensive display against Stevenage in the Carabao Cup last month to bed.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jack Whatmough, who came in for Paul Downing in central defence, scarcely looked like someone playing only his third competitive match in 18 months.

It was the Gosport lad’s instinctive long ball that created Harness’ second.

However, the real test starts against Shrewsbury on Saturday.

It's been well-documented how a stuttering start ultimately had Pompey playing catch-up on their rivals in last season's promotion race.

That simply can't happen again.