Portsmouth goalkeeping dynasty continues as ex-Birmingham youngster follows in tragic uncle's footsteps

A familiar name has maintained a goalkeeping dynasty synonymous with Pompey.

On Saturday, Solihull Moors handed a debut to promising teenager Aaron Flahavan for the televised clash at Dagenham & Redbridge.

The youngster marked his maiden senior outing with victory as the visitors claimed a 2-1 success in the National League fixture, while afterwards earned praise for his display.

For the Flahavan family, it was a landmark to treasure, as the 19-year-old followed in the footsteps of father Darryl and late uncle Aaron.

Indeed, he was named after former Pompey keeper Aaron, who tragically died in a car crash outside Bournemouth at the age of 25 in August 2001.

At the time he was the Blues’ first-choice goalkeeper, having made 105 appearances and succeeded the legendary Alan Knight.

When the son of younger brother Darryl was born several years later, he named him after his brother as a tribute.

Following spells in Academies at Southampton, Pompey, Middlesbrough and Birmingham, the youngster is now with Solihull Moors seeking to establish himself in the game.

The door was opened last week when The Moors’ first-choice keeper, Tommy Simkin, was recalled by Stoke following a training ground injury to Frank Fielding.

It brought a season-long loan to an abrupt end, with Flahavan instead thrust into the limelight for the trip to the Daggers.

After falling behind in the 44th minute, Solihull struck back through Jay Benn and Josh Kelly to claim a 2-1 victory to leave them third in the National League behind Chesterfield and Barnet.

And assistant manager Pead praised Flahavan’s debut on Dagenham’s official YouTube channel.

He said: ‘These things happen, clubs can call loans back at any point and you’ve got to adapt and play the players you’ve got.

‘Az came in and I thought he was absolutely fantastic. His kicking was great, he was brave and he kind of commanded his box and he communicated well - and it just shows the trust and the faith the lads had in him.

‘We celebrated with him in the dressing room, he was last in and it was great for him, a great performance.’

Darryl Flahavan spent the 2010-11 campaign at Pompey as number two to Jamie Ashdown without making an appearance.

Overall, he totalled approaching 500 appearances in a career which also saw fine service at Southend, Crystal Palace, Leeds, Bournemouth and Crawley. 

Since retirement in June 2016, he has worked as a goalkeeping coach with the likes of Wigan, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Birmingham and Sheffield Wednesday.

And the baton has been passed down to Aaron to maintain the family tradition.