'He can put the grub away' - the entertaining extra details provided on striker's transfer to Portsmouth after Blackpool deal collapsed

Former Pompey coach Simon Bassey has provided a unique and entertaining insight into the role he played in getting Colby Bishop to Fratton Park.

A key member of Danny Cowley’s backroom team, the 48-year-old also gave fans a good understanding of what makes their top scorer over the past two seasons tick - ‘grub!’

Bassey’s revelations come following an interview Cowley gave to The News this week, where he details how the Blues signed Bishop from under the noses of Blackpool in the summer of 2022.

The ex-Pompey manager said: ‘His (Bishop’s) medical there wasn't straightforward, he’d had some injury issues which slowed Blackpool’s deal. They had sent him for some scans and something showed up, so they wanted him to see a specialist - and we got in-between it.

‘My best friend is a doctor and we always use him in that capacity, he’s a genius and we have a lot of trust in him. There was no big concern from us. When we did Colby’s medical, we were pleased with what we saw - a really robust athlete.

‘I got Simon Bassey to drive to pick him up from London, we didn’t want him kidnapped along the way, so he was chaperoned into Portsmouth! He got in really late at night.’

Now former Barnet boss Bassey has added extra detail to a swoop that has paid off massively for the Blues, with Bishop scoring 45 goals in 100 appearances and spearheading Pompey’s League One title success this season. Although, we must admit, it’s a quick-fire version with a few other interesting details thrown in for good measure - including Bishop’s joy that boyhod club Nottingham Forest were signing Jesse Lingard on a free transfer from Manchester United!

Responding to our very own Neil Allen’s tweet about the story on X, formerly Twitter, Bassey gave this fascinating insight: ‘Wimbledon - Heathrow - Harley st (he was more happy forest were signing Lingard ) - Brentwood (Dr Ross) - Mexican stand off in the petrol station - village hotel in Portsmouth - Wimbledon. He can put the grub away the boy, it was some day me & Glove box’s road trip top lad’

And he wasn’t done there. Bassey added: ‘Got nearly as many goals as he had sandwiches and all consumed in under 3 bites!’

It’s clear the ex-Blues coach wasn’t just tasked with getting the players in tip-top shape for matches during his time at Fratton Park under the Cowleys, with Bassey also expected to take on the roles of personal chauffeur and Deliveroo driver, too!

No doubt, other jobs fulfilled and mercy dashes undertaken to bolster Pompey will come to light in the future. In the meantime, though, we thank you, Simon, for the vital role you played in getting Bishop to PO4.

It’s an intervention the Blues are still reaping the benefits of! It’s also clear Pompey got a better deal than the one Forest were working on with Lingard!