Portland United FC

Franklyn is very pleased to have re-signed LEWIS CLARKE.Lewis last played for The Blues in the season 2018/19, he was also a member of the squad which won the Sydenhams Wessex League Premier Division in the 2016/17 season scoring nine goals. Since the 2013/14 season, Lewis has worn the blue shirt a total of 120 times, scoring 62 goals along the way. Franklyn commented: “I’m happy to bring Lewis in as another attacking option - he brings something slightly different to what we already have. He was keen to come back to Portland and I’m glad to have him onboard”. Welcome back Lewis.#theblues

The 100 Club for October was drawn by Jan Camp, the winners were as follows:-First prize Tom Savage Second Dave Norster Third Tom ButcherThank you to all who entered....More Info ->https://portlandutdfc.co.uk/commercial/club-lottery/#theblues

Today marks an exciting milestone for grassroots football as the Premier League, The FA and Government's Football Foundation has announced the completion of the Local Football Facility Plans. The Plans outline what facilities every local authority area across England needs to meet the demand of football in their area. For the first time, this country has a roadmap to invest and build what every community needs. And the benefits of the facilities set out in the Plans go far beyond the pitch. They transform communities and change lives for the better. It’ll mean more people can play our national game, physical and mental health can be improved, communities can grow stronger and young people become more empowered. But the Plans are just the first step. We need to work with local authorities, partners and communities to turn these plans into reality. Everyone has their part to play.Find out how you can play yours by heading to the Football Foundation website and searching for your Local Plan, link below.......https://localplans.footballfoundation.org.uk/local-authorities-index/dorset/dorset-executive-summary/

PORTLAND United assistant-manager Sam Poole is “confident” the Blues can escape the clutches of the Sydenhams Wessex Premier Division relegation zone.Speaking to Echosport before lockdown, Poole believes the Blues, who sit in 19th place, have addressed their main problem of conceding goals.Portland have conceded eight goals on three separate occasions this season and were thumped 14-1 by Poole Town in a pre-season friendly.However, new boss Franklyn Clarke and Poole have steadied the ship – despite conceding eight at Cowes Sports in their second game.Poole insisted a repeat of the Cowes loss under the duo’s fresh leadership “certainly won’t be happening again.”He said: “Yeah, we’re confident of keeping them up. The biggest problem before coming in was conceding goals.“That’s something we needed to address right away, so we opted for a 3-5-2 formation.“It was a shame at Cowes, the boys dropped their heads and were used to conceding too many goals in games.“When it gets to a certain stage it’s hard to get out of that mindset.“That was a blip in terms of mine and Frank’s time at Portland. That certainly won’t be happening again.“In the grand scheme of things we’re a new team. We’ve brought six or seven players in and it’s a learning curve this season.“We’re only going to get better as we gel more as a team and Frank and I can get our ideas across in training and go and perform on a Saturday.”

SAM Poole admitted it had been a “difficult decision” to leave Dorchester Town to take up the number two role at Portland United.Poole, along with midfielder Franklyn Clarke, exited the Magpies to form the Blues’ new management team and will play the occasional game at Grove Corner.The duo’s first job in the hotseat has yielded four points from five games, including an agonisingly late 2-1 defeat against Sydenhams Wessex Premier Division favourites Hamworthy.Clarke and Poole were regulars in Dorchester’s starting line-up this season before their move, but the offer of taking the reins at Portland proved tough to resist.He told Echosport: “I’ve got quite a hands-on role and support Frank as much as I can.“It was definitely the sway for the management piece, rather than the playing piece.“Obviously I’ve featured quite a bit and I’ll continue to play. Looking forward to the future, we’re bringing on the young lads.“Louis Hankin’s been superb since I’ve come in and we’ve brought Sam Buckler back, who’s an experienced player at this level.“He’s played for Portland before and captained the side so it’s been good to have him there too.“Louis, as an example, is someone I feel I can help and develop and would like to see him go further in the game.”Poole revealed he was “open-minded” on the move until talks with Portland tempted him to join.“It was definitely the management side of things that swayed me away from Dorchester, which was a difficult decision,” he said.“I’m a local boy, it’s my local club and I was quite excited by talking to Leigh (Robinson, Dorchester boss) about what he was looking to do at the start of the season.“Hopefully (turning) it around from the bad fortunes it’s had and create a feel-good factor.“I was open-minded at first. I wanted to speak to Portland about their ambitions and I knew a few players – they’ve got some really good people behind the scenes.“Although this year is probably about consolidation in the league, giving some players game time and opportunities to develop, next year we’ll be looking for top 10 as a target.”