RECAP as Portsmouth defeat Lincoln City remain top of League One

Lincoln boss Mark Kennedy demonstrated he holds no grudges as he heaped praise on former player Regan Poole ahead of their reunion at Fratton Park today.

The Irishman lauded the Blues defender’s ‘outstanding’ character and professionalism – despite the disappointment of losing his captain and star defender over the summer.

The 25-year-old called time on his two-and-a-half-year stay at the Imps at the end of last season, walking away on a free transfer after 131 appearances.

It was widely anticipated that the highly-rated 25-year-old would end up in the Championship as he looked to fulfil ambitions of playing at a higher level.

It, therefore, caused a bit of bitterness among Lincoln fans when Poole ended up at Pompey instead, signing a two-year deal.

There’s no hard feelings from Kennedy, however, as he prepares to come up against the player for the first time since his Sincil Bank departure.

‘I don’t wish bad luck on anybody, I’m just not like that, and if Regan is outstanding on Saturday then good luck to him. If he has a bad game, that’s not my problem.

‘A real stand-up guy, outstanding person, player, professional, character and, you know, the one thing I liked about Regan was when he was two or three games away from looking for that move away for multiple reasons, you know he really continually put his body on the line. He was just an outstanding captain for us.

‘When I got to know Regan, I didn’t expect anything less from him but you couldn’t help but think in the background if he does take his foot off the gas because he may not want to get injured, he may not want to jeopardise that potential move. But he really, really just put his body on the line and celebrated with the lads.

‘There was a great clip towards the end of the season where someone got a block in really high up the pitch and Regan’s high-fiving (team-mates) beside him. The season was pretty much finished and it just said a lot about him.

‘Also for those who haven’t seen him, he’s been outstanding for Pompey this year. It will be really nice to see him on the day but we’re going to try our best to make it as impossible as we can for him.’

Lincoln’s loss has been Pompey’s gain, with Poole already proving a smart bit of business from the Blues’ recruitment team.

He’s played every minute of every league game so far this season as Pompey sit proudly at the top of the division with the second meanest defence in the division.

Poole’s ability has also made him a huge favourite among the Fratton faithful and his PO4 team-mates.

Pompey aim to continue their strong start to the season against Lincoln today.

John Mousinho’s side are looking to take their unbeaten run to 20 games, against the Imps - who are four points off the Blues in 10th spot.

It’s a case of friends reunited with Joe Morrell and Regan Poole going up against their former clu, while Reeo Hackett returns to Fratton Park.

We’ll be building to the kick-off with all the talking points before team news drops at 2pm.

Then it’s blow-by-blow commentary when the action gets underway from 3pm.