En håndmad blev afgørende.

At Oxford blot var placeret med 5 point ned til stregen var ikke til at se i en kamp, hvor gæsterne i den grad havde Pompey på hælene.

Kampen startede set med Pompey øjne ganske fint, på et fanforum havde en Oxfordfan givet sine tanker til et Pompey ditto fanforum. Han sagde bla. Oxford skulle undgå mål mod sig fra dødbolde.

Så målet efter 4 min der bragte Pompey på 1-0, må have fået mange en U’s fan til at sukke og tænke here we go again.

Målet var et fint indstuderet mål, hvor Clarke headede på tværs og hvor Naismith og Lowe nærmest stod i vejen for hinanden for at få lov at score efter hjørnesparket.

Pompey havde fint momentum efter målet, men stille og roligt begyndte Oxford at komme ind i kampen, og 1-0 føringen holdt til halvleg, men ufortjent havde det ikke været hvis Oxford havde lavet 3 mål.

James Henry, uha han var god, skød på overliggeren, så kom situationen hvor bolden efter et hjørne blev reddet på stregen to gange og slutteligt havde McGee en glimrende redning ude ved stolpen, mens Pompey ikke rigtig havde noget i den anden ende.

Joe Gallen, Pompeys assistent manager måtte have været bekymret i pausen, Gallen der havde ansvaret da Kenny Jackett var fraværende grundet sygdom i familien, og Gallens bekymring blev større og større.

Oxford kom rullende ned mod Pompeys mål i den ene bølge efter den anden, og alt for let kombinerede de sig frem efter pausen

Det krævede ikke nogen inspector Morse at regne ud at Pompey levede på lånt tid og da Oxford fik tilkendt straffe, nuvel et tyndt et, så var det ikke overraskende for Pompeyfansene.

Situationen omkring straffesparket blev afgørende, vores keeper Luke McGee kastede sig til den forkerte side, men skudet bragede på indersiden af stolpen og ud i spil, til stor ærgrelse for Mowatt der sparkede, og så kom Pompeys Nathan Thompson hen og meget hånligt gjorde sin mening til kende overfor Mowatt.

Smask sagde det, så sad der en lussing på Thompsons kind, og ned faldt han som en død svane.

Situationen var selvklart lettere kaotisk med flere spillere klar til at sende en håndmad af sted. Dommeren gav selvklart Mowatt det røde kort, mens Thompson gik fri, og med tanke på han havde et gult kort i forvejen, så var det en flok rasende Oxfordspillere der var på banen. Thompson blev skiftet ud inden kampen sluttede, mon ikke for at undgå en dum situation.

Kampen vendte, for med 11 mand mod 10 så var Pompey bedre og anfører Pitman fik scoret to mål og er nu oppe på 19 mål.

To point fra play off

Pompey havde heldet og noterede sig den anden sejr og deres andet clean sheet i streg og er nu blot 2 point fra Play off pladsen.

Men spillet skal blive bedre hvis håbet om det skal indfries, selvom slutprogrammet er overkommeligt for Pompey.

En spiller imponerede, Kal Naismith arbejdede hele kampen, og selv foran 3-0, kløede han på og søgte hullerne og var frustreret når han ikke fik bolden, han er åbenbart en med vinderskalle.

Oxford-manager Karl Robinson:

“Some of the football was excellent.

“We looked the better team, we looked more organised and more confident in the way we moved the ball.

“We looked a bit youthful and naïve in certain aspects of it, but that’s because it’s a young team.

“I think everybody will leave here and wonder why we’ve not got something out of the game.

“The obvious one was the missed penalty and the sending off, but up to that point we looked a class act.

“I go away from this in a much more positive frame of mind then before and we’ve been beaten.”

The manner of the first goal, coming from losing a header from a corner, has been a familiar issue for United.

Robinson said: “I’m disappointed because he’s run off one of our players and we’ve switched off.

“We’re not the most physical team in the world and we’re not blessed with height.

“It’s a deficiency in the group maybe, but they try their best with what I ask of them.

“That’s all you can do.”

Pompey-assistentmanager Joe Gallen

‘I’m just delighted to hear the crowd roar and cheers us like they did. ‘There felt like there was a bit of a momentum change.

This is a brilliant club with brilliant supporters. ‘If we can get a team out there they believe in, the support and encouragement you get from the stands is second to none. ‘It felt like we’ve got the crowd going again. Who knows what can happen? ‘We’re capable of getting on a run.

‘If we can get them believing, and I think that’s the case now, who knows where the season could end up? ‘Hearing the noise emanate from the stands told me the fans are believing in the team again. We felt that. ‘The crowd here are just waiting to go with the team. ‘But they need to see it. Like all crowds they need a spark, some quality from the players. ‘It goes off your centre-forwards normally and your attacking players. We’ve got Brett (Pitman) who’s got four in two, Jamal (Lowe) is playing well and Kal (Naismith) has come back strong.

‘We got some of our older, more experienced players back. ‘Brett has four goals in two games, Nathan Thompson has been training while suspended and came back into it well. ‘Stuart O’Keefe is training this week and Oli Hawkins is back. Gareth Evans came on and did fantastically well. ‘We could all feel as a staff the group and the spirit had picked up in training. ‘That has led on to us picking up this result. ‘We’ve got Walsall now. Is it a game we can win? Yes, but we need to play well. It’s a big game for us. ‘We’re not talking too much, but the fact is we can win the next game with the group of players we have. ‘There’s no predictions from me, but it’s there.’

Lidt fra twitter

Great stuff (again) @JackWhatmough3 ! Two wins, two clean sheets. Keep it going, you deserve a run of luck. What a lot of hard work you’ve put into the comeback(s). Well done for ignoring the doubters. Looking out there lad! #PUP

Svarer@JackWhatmough3

Wish I could win all my headers and have the fans sign “he’s one of our own”

Good win, started well but then Oxford better team. Deserved their penalty but all over after miss and sending off. Did not see incident for dismissal. An entertaining game, 3 pts and clean sheet #pup

Great team win! Obviously huge turnaround on their missed penalty. 2-0 on tv this year. First home win of 2018. 2 wins on the bounce. Second clean sheet in a row (American English). Almost touching a playoff spot. Best to Kenny and his family. #PUP #BlueArmy @officialpompey

Thompson might have had a controversial game, but he’s integral to #Pompey’s success today #PUP #OUFC#EFL

Brett the Hit man Pit man great wing play from Lowe #PUP

League one, Fratton Park, 25/3-2018

Portsmouth – Oxford 3-0 (1-0)

4. min 1-0 Kal Naismith 

62. min Mowatt (Oxford) udvist)

69. min 2-0 Brett Pitman

80. min 3-0 Brett Pitmann

Pompey (4-1-4-1): McGee; Walkes, Clarke, Whatmough, Donohue; Thompson (87.May); Lowe, Close, Ronan (51. Evans), Naismith; Pitman

Bænken: Bass, May, Evans, Burgess, Haunstrup, Kennedy, Chaplin

Gult kort: Thompson, Naismith og McGee

Tilskuere: 17.892 (1.050 away fans)

Under følgere videoer og flere bilder fra kampe