It has been a long road to recovery for Jay Mingi in his breakout season for Pompey.
The midfielder had not taken to the pitch since a defeat against Charlton on New Year’s Day after injuring his knee in training.
But he has battled back to fitness in recent weeks and got through the full 90 minutes of a Hampshire Cup tie at Bournemouth.
A 5-2 quarter-final defeat might not have been the best game to mark his comeback, but there was still a sense of relief for Mingi.
He said: “It was good to get my first run out for almost three months and that was certainly a big positive.
“I got through the 90 minutes, although the performance let me down, and the body got through it, which was the main thing.
"It was good to get my first run out for almost three months and that was certainly a big positive."
“It was really difficult to be out injured because you feel isolated and just want to be out on the pitch again.
“Even though it wasn’t great out there from me, I was just grateful to be playing again after such a big setback.
“It’s part of football and you can’t really complain about it, but it’s hard when you see everyone getting a fresh start under the new gaffer.
“All my focus has been on getting back fit and trying to play games again during the final part of the season.
“This is a massive time for me and I want to find some consistency and get back to the level I’d reached.
“That’s not going to be easy after this lay-off, but it’s not impossible and it’s what I’m going to be working towards.”