US Portsmouth preparing ‘for the worst’ after Solent University withdrawal creates a space in the Wessex League Premier Division

There is now a space available in the Premier Division after the Southampton-based student team pulled out.

Solent cited the ‘changing landscape of Higher Education which has caused a realignment of the priorities and the desire to support other sporting ambitions’ as the reason to end their nine-season stay in the Wessex.

Previously, they had played in the Hampshire Premier League, winning promotion after claiming the title in 2010/11.

Solent - known as Team Solent prior to last summer - later won the Wessex Division 1 title in 2014/15.

The team were managed by former Hawks striker James Taylor, whose son Ethan was a prolific marksman for the team in recent seasons and who made his Gosport Borough 1st XI debut at Blackfield last December.

The Wessex League have reported Solent’s resignation to the Football Association ‘who will make the League allocations for next season.’

That could well result in the FA offering Solent’s place to US Portsmouth, who were seven points clear at the top of the Wessex Division 1 table when 2019/20 was halted in mid-March.

USP boss Glenn Turnbull said: ‘I would like to think they’d do that.

‘There’s a league meeting on the 28th June, hopefully that’s on the agenda.

‘Perhaps it’s because I’ve been working from home for 13 weeks and the black clouds are coming down, but I’m not sure it’ll happen.

‘Everything we are doing at the moment is geared towards playing in the division we were in last season.

‘I’m prepared for the worst (regarding playing in the Premier in 2020/21). If you prepare for the worst, then anything else is better.’

If USP were to be placed in the Premier by the FA, that could in turn lead to a club being invited up from the Hampshire Premier League to take their place.

Alternatively, if USP went up it would give Division 1 an equal number of clubs again. They are currently one short following Pewsey Vale’s withdrawal last November.

Of course, if USP went up the FA could move TWO clubs up from the HPL - with a knock-on effect of Moneyfields Reserves being moved up after winning the HPL second tier title in 2019/20.

Another possible factor to consider is that Blackfield & Langley have asked to drop two divisions back into the Wessex Premier.

The Watersiders were playing in the Southern League Division 1 South last season, but have since lost their main benefactor and manager to AFC Totton.

If the FA were to reallocate Blackfield into the Wessex, it could mean a reshuffle involving one current Wessex club being asked to go up to the Southern League.

All will hopefully become clearer in the coming weeks.

Turnbull, meanwhile, has welcomed five new signings in the last month.

Jack Chander has returned from Baffins Milton and Reece Colbourne has arrived from AFC Portchester.

USP have also taken three members of the Horndean reserves side who have been folded.

Sonny Harnett-Balkwill, Edward Glastonbury and Ben Cooper were all recommended to Turnbull by Deans boss Mike Birmingham.

‘I think the first call Birms made after the decision was taken to fold the reserves was to ask me if I could take those three players,’ he explained.

‘He said those three were almost ready (for first team football).

‘They have all fitted in well on the WhatsApp group.’

Harnett-Balkwill and Glastonbury played for Horndean’s 1st XI back in March against USP in a Portsmouth Senior Cup tie at the Victory Stadium.

Harnett-Balkwill was also a member of Hawks’ academy side, and came on as a sub in their Hampshire Senior Cup win at Gosport Borough earlier this year.

Turnbull was interested in signing Owen Haly, who made a handful of 1st XI starts for Baffins Milton in 2019/20. He has now moved to Wessex Premier outfit Brockenhurst instead.

But Lloyd Ayling will be taking part when USP start pre-season training in earnest. The one-time Eastleigh youngster was also with Havant’s academy last term, also making a single Hampshire Senior Cup sub outing.

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Turnbull is delighted that USP have received around £4,500 of sponsorship in recent weeks.

So far, 15 players have organised kit sponsorship for 2020/21 - at £100 per player.

MTECH Walling have, for the second year running, donated around £2,000 to sponsor the first team kit.

And another sponsor has paid around £1,000 to buy 30 sets of training kit.

‘That is massive for a club like ourselves,’ said Turnbull.

‘One of the players asked if they were having new tracksuits this year. I said ‘where is the money going to come from for that?’

‘All the managers and coaches buy our own tracksuits etc. It probably costs me around £500-£600 to manage US Portsmouth each season - and the same for Fraser (Quirke) and Barto (Paul Barton).

‘And we’re up against the likes of Bemerton who have just signed a player (Jack Smith) who was in AFC Totton’s first team last season.’