Pompey i kontrol i sæsonens 5. træningskamp.
Det var den 4. sejr I 5. træningskampe men den anden kamp I streg hvor Pompey holdet nullet. Clean sheets er vigtige for de hold der har ambitionen om oprykning, og der skal Pompey være.
Pompey stillede lidt overraskende op på nogle af positionerne, og her som de fleste fans troede at Jackett havde sat sin start XI fast, ja så var der lidt overraskende plads til Jack Whatmough i forsvaret.
Offensivt spillede Hawkins fra start med Chaplin, Curtis og Lowe liggende bagved. Kun Jamal Lowe må siges at ligne en til start XI.
Pompey var opsatte og efter bare to min, havde der været en frisk afslutning udefra der strøg over målet og en fin pasning fra Chaplin til Lowe, som dog måtte se sit forsøg reddet.
Pompey holdt fast i taktstokken om end Swindon kom mere med i kampen, og Swindon havde så absolut muligheden, den største blot et par min efter den livlige start, men vores keeper MacGillivray snuppede den.
Oppe foran vandt Hawkins alt i luften og det lå og lurede med en scoring, for Pompey var livlige oppe omkring Swindons straffesparksfelt bla med et saksespark fra Conor Chaplin.
Det holdt 0-0 til pausen med Swindon der nok forsøgte, men Pompey så solide ud i forsvaret.
Efter pauseteen fastholdte Pompey spillet og det at komme frem til mulighederne, og et indlæg fra Jamal Lowe fandt Oli Hawkins, der endnu engang vandt duellen i luften og så førte Pompey 0-1.
Swindon kom straks efter frem til et par gode muligheder men ind ville bolden ikke, og igen tog Pompey fat om kampen og Hawkins skulle have scoret til 0-2 på en spilning fra Chaplin, men ikke lang tid efter blev det 0-2, etn afslutning fra Curtis bliver rettet af, og Chaplin spiller Jamal Lowe der scorer på sin 24 års fødselsdag.
For fansene må det være særdeles positivt at Pompey kan kontrollere kampen og igen holde nullet bagude og at det var en kamp hvor Pompey stort set i alle 90 min var i kontrol.
Det bliver nøglen til succes den kommende sæson hvis der skal være ambitioner om oprykning.
Nu var det blot et hold fra League Two som er rækken under Pompey, men der tegner sig et billede, håber skribenten på.
Lidt overraskende var der kun en udskiftning, nemlig Walkes der lige var kommet til Pompey fik de første 45 min og så fik Rose anden halvleg.
The News skrev følgende på Twitter om kampen
• Both goals well worked team moves
• Oli Hawkins won loads of headers and should’ve scored more
• Gave away too many silly free kicks at times
• Matt Taylor is still class
Pompey manager Kenny Jackett:
The game was a useful one for us, with the majority of the players out there getting 90 minutes.
“It felt more like a cup tie than a pre-season match – there were a lot of balls into the box and it was very end-to-end.
“There was a high level of pace shown and it so would have been a good fitness exercise for both sides.
“Swindon overload the midfield and they caused us problems, which is good because that will happen during the season.
“I’m pleased with the clean sheet, with our keeper making one outstanding save in the first half and then in the second we put our bodies on the line.
“It gives you something to build on and helps you be as constructive as possible – we were disappointed to concede three at Stevenage last week.
“We were happy with Oli’s goal, although I did feel there were more there for him. We’re telling him that he needs to head the ball down or back across more consistently.
“If we can get Jamal into the right positions then that really helps and with Ronan Curtis on the other side, we’ve got the pace to break into spaces.”
Swindon manager Phil Brown:
«I learned quite a lot today.
«We played some decent stuff up to a point and in the final-third, which is the business end of the game, we are looking to not be overly expressive at the moment, we just need to take the handbrake off so that the flow in-front of goal comes.
«We’ve got goals in the team.
«The other side of the coin is that we are short of two or three defenders capable of playing at this level mentally and physically.
«Portsmouth had that mentality today to keep clean sheets.
«When it came to us having our best chance, the keeper has pulled off a decent save, it has spilled to the edge of the box, Ellis (Iandolo) came in and I witnessed three, possibly four players from Portsmouth throwing their bodies on the line to stop the ball going into the back of the net and that is in pre-season.
«That is the mentality I am talking about and the next two weeks is going to be about people who are prepared to die for the cause and people who are prepared to put their bodies on the line in-front of both goals.»
Træningskamp, County Ground, 21.juli 2018
Swindon – Portsmouth 0-2 (0-0)
58. min. 0-1 Ollie Hawkins
72. min. 0-2 Jamal Lowe
Pompey (4-2-3-1): MacGillivray; Thompson, Whatmough, Clarke, Brown; Naylor, Walkes (46. Rose); Lowe, Chaplin, Curtis; Hawkins.
Bænken: McGee, Burgess, Casey, Haunstrup, May, Evans, Dennis, Smith, Pitman
Craig MacGillivray
Jamal Lowe.
Godt å se Danny Rose tilbake igjen.