McCrorie’s ‘thankful for the experience of being able to play for such a brilliant club’

ROSS McCrorie explained his future’s still to be decided as he returned to Rangers.

But the midfielder thanked Pompey for a Fratton experience he believes will be invaluable to his football development.

McCrorie has now returned north of the border after a seasonlong loan stay at PO4 and bizarrely goes straight into a pre-season – four days after his season came to a close.

The 22-year-old played 20 minutes in a warm-up win over Hamilton Academical last Friday following on from the Oxford United disappointment.

There was the suggestion Pompey were keen to bring the Scotland under-21 captain in permanently before the coronavirus pandemic took grip.

That now looks more unlikely with the prospect of a wage cap in the EFL next term muddying the waters further.

McCrorie explained the path ahead for him is still unclear, but wasn’t in doubt about his appreciation for the opportunity to turn out for Pompey.

He said: ‘I’ve loved my time at Portsmouth, thoroughly enjoyed it.

‘The coaches, the people involved with the club, the fans have made me feel welcome and I appreciate that.

‘It’s a real tight community and there’s that feeling that everyone at the club is in it together. That’s what I liked about it.

‘I’ve not really spoke to

(Rangers manager) Steve Gerrard since I came back (about his future).

‘I’m just going to get my head down and work hard, because I’ve gotalottoprove.

‘I’m not sure what will happen because I’ve not been back here long enough yet.

‘I need to think about it when the time comes (if a loan opportunity comes up again).

‘But I’m just thankful for the experience of being able to play for such a brilliant club like Portsmouth.’

McCrorie’s stay at Pompey was punctuated by challenges from a red card on his debut at Shrewsbury Town to two spells on the sidelines with a hamstring issue and then testing positive for Covid-19.

The man who arrived as a midfielder but then competed with James Bolton for a starting role at right-back, felt he was arriving back at his best before the football season was suspended in March.

That then saw his hope of making a strong impression over the season’s finale dashed.

McCrorie added: ‘I had my two injuries and missed quite a lot of the season.

‘I managed to get myself back and fitness up then the coronavirus came along, so I missed three big sections of the season.

‘I had my hamstring problem and came back too quickly with my eagerness to play.

‘I had two big injuries which kept me out for two-and-a-half to three months, had internationals and still made 23 appearances. So that’s definitely a positive I’m taking out of it.

‘I just feel like I was back at my best when the coronavirus came. It’s a shame but I still loved the experience.’

– JORDAN CROSS