Ryley Towler and Reeco Hackett will come up against their former club this weekend, with Portsmouth head coach John Mousinho praising the progress both have made since moving to Sincil Bank.
The pair played important roles as City won the League One title with 103 points last season, and they are now preparing to face Portsmouth in our first Championship home fixture of the campaign. However, Mousinho was the manager who allowed both to leave Fratton Park
Mousinho full of praise for Towler
Towler joined the Imps from Pompey for an undisclosed fee in July 2025, signing an initial four-year contract. After an excellent first season with the club, the 24-year-old was rewarded with a new deal running until the summer of 2030.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s reunion, Mousinho explained to The News that Portsmouth’s decision to sell Towler had been made to give the defender an opportunity to play regularly.
“We sold Ryley just to be fair to him. I would have loved to have kept him around from a selfish standpoint. It was just about being fair to the kid, and he has gone and done brilliantly.
“Then, in the Championship, he played more games than the League One season, before going to Lincoln and doing very well. He had a huge amount of success there in his first season and got promoted.
“There is no nicer kid in football than Ryley, which I’m sure everybody knows. I wish him every success, apart from this weekend!”
Towler made 45 appearances for Portsmouth after joining from Bristol City in January 2023. He was part of their League One title-winning squad in 2023/24, although his opportunities were restricted by the form of Conor Shaughnessy.
One of his six league appearances that season came at Sincil Bank on the final day, when Portsmouth’s 2-0 victory ended City’s hopes of securing a play-off place. Just over a year later, he joined the Imps and won a second League One title.
Hackett turned himself into a Championship player
Hackett has enjoyed a similarly successful career since leaving Fratton Park. City paid around £40,000 for the winger in June 2023, and he has since registered 23 goals across 120 appearances.
The Saint Lucia international has developed into a key member of the squad, contributing goals from both wing-back and attacking positions. He signed a new contract until 2029 earlier this summer, underlining his importance to the club’s Championship plans.
Mousinho told The News that leaving Portsmouth had allowed Hackett to establish himself elsewhere.
“He’s had a very, very good three years and turned himself into a Championship player.
“We looked at it at the time and decided to go in a certain direction with the boys we had in the building. We did very well after the year we sold Reeco, and he also did very well.
“Sometimes things work out both ways and, if Reeco had stayed, maybe he wouldn’t have had such a successful time. Maybe he would, you never know.”
In fairness, it feels a bit like Reeco’s time at Pompey is being written off a bit. 11 goals in 79 outings might not be comparable to his Lincoln form, but he also got four assists, which is 15 goal involvements over his time there.
Either way, I think Reeco, more so than Ryley, will have a point to prove tomorrow afternoon.
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