Clinical Portsmouth appear in good place ahead of long-awaited London 3 South West season

Portsmouth Rugby Club made the perfect start to preparations for the upcoming season with a resounding friendly victory.
Portsmouth Rugby head coach Gareth Richards. Picture: Neil Marshall (171124-384)Portsmouth Rugby head coach Gareth Richards. Picture: Neil Marshall (171124-384)
Portsmouth Rugby head coach Gareth Richards. Picture: Neil Marshall (171124-384)

New head coach Gareth Richards watched on as his side ran in eight tries on the way to a thumping 58-10 victory at Pulborough.

Portsmouth, who are counting down the days until their London 3 South West opener at Andover on September 18, included a mix of old and new faces for their first friendly of pre-season.

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Pulborough had no answer for the quality their visitors possessed and it all bodes well for Richards, who took on the head coach role in early 2020.

But the coronavirus pandemic, which has halted competitive rugby in England from March 2020 up until this point, means Richards has still yet to oversee a Portsmouth league game.

Yet, the anticipation is sure to now be building among the players and staff at Rugby Camp with just over two weeks until the curtain comes down on the new season.

Portsmouth welcome Gosport & Fareham in what will be their final warm-up match on Saturday prior to travelling to Andover when they finally return to London 3 South West action for the first time in more than 18 months.

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