'We wanted to show him a bit of love' - Portsmouth-based Spurs fans' terrific gesture to ensure Dane Scarlett feels at home on the south-coast

The Portsmouth Spurs Official Supporters’ Club consist of 90 members based in and around the city, from Portsea Island to Cosham and Cowplain.

Formed just two years ago, the group have now decided to stump up £695 plus VAT to become Scarlett’s official player sponsor during the duration of his Fratton Park stay.

The 18-year-old is regarded as the ‘next big thing’ by followers of the Premier League giants, with his south-coast progress being watched with great interest.

According to one of the organisers, Ian Connelly, it seemed natural for the local branch of the Spurs’ supporters’ club to get involved.

Certainly Scarlett has impressed during his three Blues outings so far, including handed a maiden start in Tuesday night’s 3-0 win at Cardiff in the Carabao Cup.

And having organised raffles, silent auctions and collected donations, they are now the proud sponsors of the highly-promising striker.

Connelly, from Cowplain, told The News: ‘Quite a few of us probably still go to Fratton Park, even though we are Spurs fans.

‘It’s local to us, we grew up going there as kids and still have a soft spot for Pompey. For many, it’s our second team.

‘Spurs are my club, but my first game was at Fratton Park many, many years ago. I continued to attend through my latter school years, cheering them on.

‘So we decided to get behind the guy and show a bit of love for him from the Spurs fans.

‘A lot of us have seen Dane play live at Tottenham, while he has done really well with England under-19s, so we’re following his progression.

‘He has been a prolific goalscorer in the Academy and hopefully being at Fratton Park for a year brings him up to the next level.

‘Dane’s got that goal-scoring ability. He’s on the fringe of Spurs’ first-team, has played a few minutes in different cup competitions, and absolutely torn up the Academy.

‘You’ll probably see the quality of his finishing over the coming months if he gets some game time at Pompey.

‘He really looks like he could be that next big thing, there are high hopes for him.’

As part of the sponsorship package, the Portsmouth Spurs Official Supporters’ Club will receive Scarlett’s signed shirt and are invited to the end-of-season sponsors evening.

Their name also appears in Pompey’s official club programme and was included for the first time last Saturday against Lincoln.

The Portsmouth Spurs Official Supporters’ Club are still seeking members from the local area to join.

For more information, visit www.portsmouthspurs.com or email [email protected]

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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