‘One of the boys [who went to Syria] – I have had his sister over to my house,’ says a 32-year-old care support worker who knows several of the Pompey Lads’ families and does not wish to be named as a result. ‘As soon as you look at her you can tell she is frightened. Even inside my home she whispers because she thinks people are listening.’ As she talks on a street corner, she glances left and right. ‘They went [to Syria] because they felt Muslim people were struggling and wanted to do something about it. It is not just the boys. Some girls have talked quite openly about wanting to go as well. They say we have to do something,’ he says.