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Portsmouth defender pens farewell message to Charlton as former Reading man’s Fratton Park future hangs in balance
Tom McIntyre has penned a goodbye message to Charlton Athletic following the conclusion of his Addicks loan.
With the defender now set for a return to Pompey, he said he was grateful for the opportunity to play for such a ‘great club’ and to play a ‘small part’ in their return to the Championship.
McIntyre posted the farewell message on X the day after Nathan Jones’ side won promotion back to the second tier of English football via the League One play-offs. The Valley outfit were confirmed as the 24th and final team in next season’s division after they beat Leyton Orient 1-0 in Sunday’s Wembley finale.
McIntyre, who arrived at Charlton in January on a deal until the end of the season, was not part of the Addicks match-day squad that triumphed over their London neighbours.
Instead, he watched on from the stands as his new team-mates claimed victory thanks to Macaulay Gillesphey’s 31st-minute effort.
It was the second time in a row that the centre-back missed out on selection and the fourth in six matches as Jones’ team powered their way back to the Championship for the first time since the 2019-20 season.
Yet McIntyre remained thankful for the opportunity presented to him by the south London side.
What Tom McIntyre said in farwell message to Charlton
Posting on X, the 26-year-old former Reading man wrote: ‘Season done and I’m so grateful to have been given the opportunity to come to this great club on loan and play a small part in this momentous season.
‘Thank you to all the lads, staff and fans for making me feel so welcome over the last few months.’
Why Pompey defender Tom McIntyre moved to Charlton in January and how it panned out
McIntyre moved to Charlton in a bid to get more regular game, after falling down the pecking order at Fratton Park.
The centre-half – a £75,000 signing from the Royals in January 2024 – made 10 Blues starts in a row following his return from a broken ankle in September.
However, with Pompey struggling for consistency in the Championship, he soon found himself out of favour. Indeed, midfielder Marlon Pack was asked to fill in as a make-shift centre-back to help shore up a leaky defence that had conceded 19 goals during the same period.
The January signing Rob Atkinson pushed McIntyre further out of the picture, so a move to promotion-chasing Charlton over the second half of the season made sense for all concerned.
Yet, at the The Valley, the defender continued to struggle for regular minutes.
