The best and undoubtedly worst things I saw as flak flew at Portsmouth skipper amid form drop and axing
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
When it comes to the Pompey Twittersphere there can be few takes to have such an eye-rubbing impact, even in that often bonkers online world of polarised views.
Most of us will be aware of the post in question this week, as it was suggested Marlon Pack’s name on the team-sheet against Sheffield Wednesday should’ve been BOOED last night.
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Hide AdIt was a sentiment which came off the back of growing frustration at Pompey’s ongoing Championship struggles, with strong feelings boiling to the surface in the face of what was a worryingly limp Cardiff showing.
And Pack was undoubtedly the man in the firing line, with criticism flying his way in the wake of recent displays perceived, with some justification, as being below the required level.
Now a reasoned debate about the Pompey skipper’s form and the contributory factors to that undoubtedly has merit. Is it formation, the level, age, players around him or merely a blip?
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Hide AdTo think haranguing the man who raised standards and was fuelled by a genuine and deeply-felt attachment to his club, which then permeated the group, was the way to go?
Even by Twitter’s standards it has to go down as one of the most ill-conceived and crass Pompey statements in recent memory.
As many bemoaned the final nail in the coffin of the unstinting backing this club’s fanbase is renowned for, there was the suspicion this may have been an act fuelled by a desire for attention: a push for traction, with some fishing emojis to follow.
What followed, however, provided a balance and context as Pompey’s fanbase collectively recoiled with the statement shared far and wide.
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Hide AdIt’s that overwhelming reaction which should now be afforded the strongest considerations over the subject, with Pack given forceful backing as a groundswell of support rose.
And when it comes to the discourse over the 33-year-old, anyone ready to write off his Fratton career may want to hold off etching his epitaph.
A player who, earlier this year, was recognised as being in the top trio of performers in League One and widely acknowledged by fans and peers alike, doesn’t fall off a cliff so quickly.
And the age-old criticism for a player the wrong side of 30, his legs have gone, doesn’t add up either. This is not someone who five years ago was burning off midfielders with searing pace - or 20 years ago for that matter.
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Hide AdPack has crafted a career - with eight years spent at Championship level - by dictating the game and placing ownership of the ball as his ultimate priority, while occupying spaces to negate threat out of possession.
Those who marvelled at the academy graduate’s reverse pass for Elias Sorensen’s goal in a man-of-the-match performance at highly-fancied Leeds on the opening day weren’t saying he was shot, that’s for sure.
Yes, there may be a discussion to be had about the volume of minutes moving forward this season, against which opposition his attributes are best suited or what’s required from Pack in games.
But those writing off the Buckland boy now have very short memories indeed.
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