Portsmouth boss rejects drinks break during pre-season friendly

Drinks breaks don't come around easily if you're a Portsmouth player

Portsmouth boss Danny Cowley rejected the chance for his players to have a drinks break during a pre-season friendly on Wednesday as he felt they 'hadn't run about enough'. Cowley took his side to Bognor Regis as part of their preparations for the upcoming League One campaign, which begins next weekend.

Cowley left shocked at referee's offer to have a drinks break

Given the beyond-ridiculous temperatures the last couple of days, plenty of games have incorporated drinks breaks to allow players to rehydrate during and stay safe. But when offered the opportunity to do the same 30 minutes into their friendly against Bognor on Wednesday, Cowley was left shocked and refused the break. A tweet from the non-league side's account confirmed Cowley's refusal, with the account confirming he said: "They’ve got to get fit — let them run about first!" https://twitter.com/rocks1883/status/1549834643402330113 The game finished 1-1 in the end after Harry Jewitt-White cancelled out Nick Dembele's first-half opener for the hosts as Portsmouth now turn their attention to their final two pre-season fixtures against Coventry City and Barnet before the start of the campaign. https://twitter.com/rocks1883/status/1549855857244094466

Cowley's side one of the favourites for promotion

Portsmouth will be considered as one of the favourites for promotion to the second-tier this year, with pressure on Cowley to deliver after missing out on the play-offs by 10 points last season. After starting the season strongly, a poor run of form in 2022 saw their promotion hopes fade away as they had to contend with a top-half finish. The club have also reportedly won the race to sign Colby bishop after agreeing a deal with Accrington Stanley, beating Championship side Blackpool to his signature. Bishop scored 14 goals in all competitions for John Coleman's side in League One last during the 2021/22 campaign. Related links:

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