Sejren tabt i overtiden og dermed smuttede førstepladsen.

Pompey snuste til førstepladsen, for Plymouth tabte ude til Oxford, der med den sejr hænger med i toppen. Men øv at Pompey langt inde i overtiden måtte se sejren glide ud af hænderne, da Stevenage udlignede.

Mønsteret på kampen var ellers ligesom fansene har været vant til. Pompey med masser af bold, om end Stevenage bød pænt op til dans, og ikke lod Pompey have bolden hele tiden.

Til gengæld var der mange afslutninger fra Pompey, det nærmede sig de 20 stykker i løbet af kampen. Men et er at have mange afslutninger, noget andet er at have den kvalitet der hedder at ramme målet.

Stevenage gjorde det dog svært for Pompey, der blev presset ud i vanskelige afslutninger.

Pompey som startede med Tubbs på toppen igen, mødte et Stevenagehold der var klar fra start, der var ikke spillet mere end 2 min, da Michael Tonge Stemplede sig ind i kampen med et frispark, og den rutinerede midtbanespiller satte sit præg på kampen.

Chaplin

Som kampen skred frem, må de små 15.000 fans have haft følelsen  at dette var en film de har set for ofte, for det var først med 13 min igen at indskiftede Chaplin satte føringsmålet.

Inden da var Tubbs udgået og vores nye angriber på lån fra Wolves var kommet på banen. Paul Cook skal roses for ikke panisk at ændre koncept, men det var ved 0-0 at vi skiftede angriber ud, måske skulle vi have gået over til 2 angribere.

Nu blev det en overtidsscoring sat ind med hovedet, og dermed røg førstepladsen retur til Plymouth.

Hjemmebaneproblem?

7 hjemmekampe har kun kastet 2 sejre af sig, 4 uafgjorte men også blot et nederlag. Det positive er at Pompey i 14 kampe har hentet point i de 13 af dem og på intet tidspunkt har været spillet ud af banen. Det tegner godt, og Paul Cook holder fast i det han tror på, og selvom vi specielt på hjemmebane møder hold der paker sig og er tilfredse med at hente 0-0 med hjem, ja så ligger vi med fremme. 27 point efter 14 kampe er godkendt.

Det er dog tæt i toppen, der er ikke langt til de hold der ligger lige udenfor play off.

Pompey manager Paul Cook:

‘We gave a sloppy free-kick away, didn’t deal with it and then didn’t deal with the throw-in into the box.

‘That’s football, you have to get on with it and look to the next game.

‘The lads were very flat afterwards and we expected it to be like that, we have got a lot of good characters in the dressing room and they want to win so much for the fans and the big crowd in again – and they have disappointed them.

‘Naturally we are all going to be disappointed, but the reality of life is we have lost one game in 14.

‘If we lose one in the next 14 and we are all this disappointed then something is seriously wrong.

‘It was a good game. Stevenage have got some good players.

‘There were times – especially in the second half – they took control of the ball once or twice and that was disappointing.

‘I thought at times we played well, at times we didn’t and ended up drawing 1-1.

‘We played poorly at Newport and won.

‘We are not firing but are finding a way to get results so we will keep working our way on the training ground.

‘The quicker we get everyone playing well, the better.’

The reality is we have lost one league game in 14 all season, that’s the reality of it.

‘Our home form isn’t what we would all like it to be. Yet our away form is the best in the country.

‘One week we are doing really great and get applauded, the next we’re not.

‘It’s just disappointing. You feel the disappointment all around the stadium.’

Stevenage manager Teddy Sheringham

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Kommentarer fra The News:

Why all this rubbish about systems? We made enough chances last night to win three games. It doesn’t matter what system you play if the players aren’t putting away the chances created. PC is right about the fact that at the moment we are huffing and puffing and while playing reasonably well, things have not quite clicked. Having said this, what we are watching this year is a million miles better than what we have had to put up with in the last few seasons. I will take 27 points from 14 games all day long especially as we have achieved this while not at full potential. The crowd last night was very quiet and a lot of people are asking the question what has happened to the Fratton End? The players are giving the effort which I think everyone will agree with so maybe it’s time for our «Famous Support» to get involved and start cheering the lads on starting on Saturday.

By playing both Tubbs and Chaplin you put more pressure on the opposition defence and mute their attack especially our fullbacks giving quality support.
You still have 8 players to defend with.

es we are 2nd in the league, just, and we have lost only 1 in 14 games but the truth is that without a match winning performance on Saturday both those comments could be redundant by 5 pm. But I am greedy and desperate for success after the recent past and frustratingly, in my view, we have a squad which should have been capable of turning at least 2 of our home draws, maybe 3, into wins which would have us top with maybe clear water below us. A third of the season has almost gone and it’s time for Pompey to prove that their quality is ‘real’ and not just ‘talk’. Paul C admits that Pompey are not firing and it’s time for some performances that have us out of our seats all around FP. Will it be Saturday? Not without a significant improvement in Pompeys form at home or a dramatic loss of form by Mansfield. Should we be holding our breath? Hmmm time will tell. Mansfield certainly won’t be troubled by the thought of playing at FP. Why should they be?
On a separate but related issue it will be interesting to see what the views of The News sports team will be regarding Saturdays game. For weeks they have been ‘on the sofa’ confidently predicting ‘a home win’ for Pompey including a 4-1 last night, sorry Steve, I wonder if a crack will start to appear in their confidence in the not too distant future?

10 points from a possible 21 at home is simply not good enough. Only 2 wins out of 7. Paul cook needs to change his system because passing and possession wont win us games. I agree with Hilsea we need 2 up front at home.
Our away form is great and we cant argue with 4-2-3-1 away that’s working but Barker got slated for playing 1 up top at home and look what happened to him!

Cook has stated this in the past in truth the only thing missing

Felt like a defeat leaving fratton park last night after the late leveller.
I do agree hilsea we need go with two up front for the start of home games.
I did think it was strange that cookie replaced tubbs with lavery then brought on Chaplin.. I would have liked to have seen tubbs and Chaplin up there together (I thought lavery looked good when he came on)
Rommy Rico impressed me too..

Leauge Two, Fratton Park, 20/10-2015

Portsmouth-Stevenage 1-1 (0-0)

77. min. 1-0 Chaplin

94. min. 1-1 Williams

Pompey (4-2-3-1): McCarey; Davies, Burgess, Webster, Stevens; Barton (Atangana 79), Doyle (c); Boco (Chaplin 71), Roberts, Bennett; Tubbs (Lavery 61)

Bænken: Murphy, Clarke, Hollands, Naismith, Atangana, Chaplin, Lavery

Tilskuere: 14,900 (133 away fans)