He sat patiently on the bench for 45 of Pompey’s League One games this season.
So Alex Bass certainly deserved to make his debut in Saturday’s campaign-ending 2-0 victory over Peterborough.
The young keeper had little to do, but looked assured when called upon as he marked his league debut with a clean sheet.
And Bass certainly enjoyed his first experience of playing in front of a packed house at Fratton Park.
He said: “You work hard during the week and do what you’ve got to do. Then when the game comes around, you just try to do your best.
“I had been thrown into the set-piece work in training and I wasn’t sure, but John Keeley (goalkeeping coach) called me up later to say I was definitely playing.
"You’ve just got to get on with it and try not to over-think things."
“There were a few nerves after that – it’s going to happen when you play in front of 18,000 people for the first time.
“But you’ve just got to get on with it and try not to over-think things. I had to treat it like another game of football.
“It’s good for me to get out there on a personal level, even if I didn’t really have a lot to do. I felt I was solid when I was called upon.
“I couldn’t really have asked for more, with the debut, the clean sheet – thanks to everyone in front of me – and the win.
“You sit there on the bench and think: 'Cor! I’d love to be out there.' There’s no feeling like it and the fans were brilliant.
“I’ve got the taste for it and now I want more because it was such a great experience. I want to get out there again.”