Bristol City new-boy Brian Howard lifts the lid on life at Portsmouth

Nobody should doubt Brian Howard's absolute determination to keep Bristol City in the npower Championship this season.

Having spent much of his career in the English second tier, the 30-year-old midfielder opted to try his hand in League One with cash-strapped Portsmouth when joining the south coast club last summer.

And it is not an experience the former Barnsley, Sheffield United and Reading play-maker wants to repeat in a hurry.

Pompey's much-publicised off-field problems overshadowed everything that happened on the pitch and Howard, feeling he had been recruited under false pretences, breathed a sigh of relief when his contract was cancelled in January.

Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk

myprint-247

View details

Print voucher

Our heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.

Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk

Contact: 01858 468192

Valid until: Friday, May 31 2013

Snapped up by Championship strugglers Bristol City until the end of the season, the former Swindon man is at last back where he belongs and is hell-bent on staying there.

Speaking ahead of tonight's contest against promotion-chasing Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, Howard recalled: "I went in there (Portsmouth) in pre-season and was promised a lot of things. I was promised a three-year contract and they showed me a list of players they were going to bring in.

"I was told they were going to do what Southampton and Brighton had done – rebuild from the bottom up and get up to the next level and kick on again. They said they wanted to make me club captain and build a team around me.

"They wanted me to go there when they were rock bottom and help take them back to the top again. They told me I would be a hero.

"In hindsight, I suppose they could have said that to everyone, but they sold it to me. I thought to myself 'let's do this'.  It seemed like a really good challenge for me.

"But until I got there and signed on the dotted line, I didn't realise just how much of a challenge it was going to be. None of the things that were promised were ever delivered and I knew pretty quickly that I'd made a mistake.

"It was tough, because it's a really good club with really good players and good people down there. But it was one of those situations where you had to look after yourself."

Howard's quest to find a new club was hindered by injury at just the wrong time, a hernia operation forcing him to wait until February before finding fresh employment.

He explained: "I had to stick in there and do what I needed to do, but then got the injury at the worst possible time.

"I had a hernia at Christmas time and that is why I had to wait until February to get a move

"I've worked hard to get myself back to fitness, hence the week spent training with Bristol City before signing.

"The gaffer wanted to see where I was fitness-wise, because there is no point signing a player and then having him sit in the stands for a couple of weeks."

Far from sitting in the stands, Howard has already afforded City fans a glimpse of what he is capable of and the defence-splitting opportunity that provided Steven Davies with a clear sight of goal at Cardiff on Saturday will no doubt have given Robins head coach Sean O'Driscoll food for thought.

City's inability to retain possession was perhaps their biggest failing at the Cardiff City Stadium and no amount of organisation and discipline can paper over the cracks exposed by the Championship's best team.

Should O'Driscoll seek to fight fire with fire against Ian Holloway's play-off hopefuls in the capital tonight, then it seems reasonable to assume Howard, Neil Kilkenny and Albert Adomah could play a part from the start at Selhurst Park.

"It was disappointing to lose, but I really enjoyed my 10 minutes on the pitch," added Howard, who made an immediate impact after coming off the bench. "I got on the ball, played a couple of through balls and felt I made a difference.

"Hopefully, I can do the same on Tuesday night. Playing Cardiff and Crystal Palace in my first two matches is a baptism of fire, but these are the big games you want to be involved in as a player.

"These are the sort of games I've missed while I've been away from the Championship and it feels great to be back. The only things that matter to me are for me to play football and for City to stay in the Championship."