Paul Cook explains why he banished Kal Naismith to train with the Portsmouth kids and sent him to Hartlepool
He finished the League Two title-winning campaign as Pompey's talisman.
But not long before inspiring the Blues to promotion, Kal Naismith had shipped out on loan to Hartlepool and then banished to train with the kids.
And Paul Cook has explained the reasons for his treatment of the Scot while in the Fratton Park hot seat.
Naismith became Cook's second signing after he took charge at PO4 in the summer of 2015.
The pair had worked together at Accrington, with the ex-Rangers forward identified as someone who could help Pompey to promotion.
Only months after his arrival, however, Naismith was sent to Hartlepool after falling out of favour.
Then during pre-season ahead of the 2016-17 season, he was made to train with the youth team and left on the south coast when Pompey ventured to Ireland for a week.
By the end of that campaign, however, Naismith had transformed himself into an indispensable player in Cooks’ side.
He made the number-10 role his own and netted seven goals in the final nine matches as the Blues captured the League Two crown.
Then after leaving Pompey in 2018, Naismith reunited with Cook at Wigan.
Cook insisted he always held the former Scotland youth international in high regard – but his methods were to build more trust between the pair.
Speaking to the Not The Top 20 Podcast, Cook said: ‘Kal Naismith is a really good lad, a really good boy and played with me at three football clubs.
‘But that was part of his education that it's not all about Kal Naismith, it's about the team.
‘Whenever Kal was out of my teams, it was purely about me and Kal getting to that point where when you trust someone, it's a fantastic way to be with a footballer.
‘It doesn't mean they play well, it doesn't mean the world is a great place to be, it just means you trust them and it’s a lovely place to be
‘With Kal at that time, our relationship wasn't like that. When I resigned from Wigan, our relationship was rock solid and trust was there.
‘With Kal, it was a case of when he'd play for me. As you can imagine, getting sent to Hartlepool from Portsmouth was a little bit tough for him, I suppose but it was part of his education and mindset.
‘But he was always going to come back to play.’