Jack Sparkes has certainly made the most of an extended run in the Pompey side.
He has impressed in the left-back role after Connor Ogilvie suffered a groin injury at Barnsley last month.
The latter player has now returned to fitness, but Sparkes kept his spot against Carlisle at the weekend and provided the crucial stoppage-time assist.
And ahead of successive away games at Cambridge and Reading, he is hoping to maintain his fine form.
The summer signing said: “The gaffer has put his trust in me and so I’m doing my very best to repay that.
“Connor is a great player and if I’m not performing at the right level, then I know he’s ready to come back in.
“When your winning games, scoring goals and keeping clean sheets, then it’s difficult for the manager to change things.
“One slip and you could be out the team, so everyone who’s not in at the moment has to be ready for the chance.
"The gaffer has put his trust in me and so I’m doing my very best to repay that."
“That’s especially the case when you’ve got three games in a week and there are a couple of tricky away ones coming up.
“Cambridge is always a tough place to go and it’s all about recovering, training well and then taking that into matches.”
Pompey left it late to beat the Cumbrians at the weekend, thanks to a fine corner from the defender that was converted by Conor Shaughnessy.
Sparkes said: “There was a sense of relief at the final whistle because maybe we hadn’t quite done enough to win the game.
“My legs were gone at the time, but I just wanted to send the ball in with a bit of quality and Conor came up with a good header.
“There’s nothing better in football than that feeling – especially in front of the Fratton End. But hopefully we can be a bit more comfortable in future.
“Carlisle set up well and did the basics, so you have to match that and then use your quality, which we didn’t do at times.
“A draw would probably have been a fair result, but the fans gave us a massive lift when we needed it at the end.”