Portchester boss won't stand in way of duo if Bognor want them

Striker Jason Parish and midfield man Ethan Robb are on trial with the Rocks and played in the 4-0 friendly win over Selsey.

Robb, 18, who was released by Pompey earlier this summer, played the full 90 minutes while forward Parish got himself on the scoresheet.

Parish is a proven striker at Wessex level, netting 18 times for Baffins and Portchester last season. He also scored 28 goals for Portchester at step 5 level in 2015-16.

Both Parsh and Robb are signed on for the Royals ahead of the upcoming Wessex League Premier Division campaign. But Portchester boss Mick Catlin was not willing to stand in either player’s way with an opportunity to join a club two levels up the pyramid potentially presenting itself.

"They’ve been asked to trial," said Catlin. "It’s a higher level and Jason’s been there for a week. Ethan has been doing both because it hasn’t clashed.

"They were asked to go to them for pre-season as well as train and play for us. Robbie Blake (Bognor coach) had Ethan when he was at Pompey so he knew him from there. They’re just having a look really.

"If he’s part of their plans, as it’s a higher level we wouldn’t stand in Ethan’s way. But they’ve both still signed on for us. If a club higher up takes an interest in one of our players we’ll push them forward and hope that they can play higher.

"With Ethan being a young lad, he’s keen to get back into the pro game and he needs to aim as high as he can. It’s good that we have clubs looking at our players."

Midfielder Robb also played the whole match as Portchesrer were beaten 2-1 at Lewes in a friendly on Saturday.