Fest trods nederlag.
Efter 17 kampe uden nederlag sluttede stimen da sæsonens sidste hjemmekamp endte med en 2-1 sejr til gæsterne fra Wigan. Heldigvis var resultatet lettere irrelevant for os, og kunne ikke sætte en dæmper på festen på dagen hvor Pompey fik overrakt League One trofæet.
Der var hele fem ændringer i startelleveren da vi tog imod Wigan i denne næstsidste runde af sæsonen. Callum Lang, Colby Bishop, Joe Rafferty, Owen Moxon og Christian Saydee fik alle chancen fra start. I stedet måtte Paddy Lane, Kusini Yengi, Lee Evans og Gavin Whyte starte på bænken mens Zak Swanson som tidligere nævnt blev sparet til denne kamp.
Den officielle kamprapport
Eftertanken
Den næste ligakamp på Fratton Park vil være i The Championship. Sidst det skete var den 21. april 2012. Modstanderen var Derby County, som vandt med 2-1. Luke Varney scorede vores enlige mål den dag.
Når man ser bort fra overrækkelsen af trofæet var det som skete på banen i dag decideret skidt og ukoncentreret, men dog forståeligt efter kulminationen på en lang og flot sæson.
Et hurtigt liga-overblik
Hvis vi starter med at se frem mod betydningen af vores kamp mod Lincoln næste weekend, ja så overtog Lincoln med en 2-1 sejr ude over Cheltenham sjettepladsen igen fra Oxford, som hjemme måtte nøjes med 1-1 mod Stevenage. Det betyder altså, at vi i sidste spillerunde møder en modstander, der skal bruge alle tre points mod os. Så vidt så godt.
I kampen om den anden direkte oprykningsplads har Derby County stadig afgørelsen i egne hænder efter at de tog en 1-0 sejr hos Cambridge. Bag dem vandt Bolton som de skulle, men afstanden mellem de to forbliver tre points. Det betyder, at Derby nu blot skal bruge et enkelt point hjemme mod bundproppen Carlisle for at snuppe andenpladsen. Bolton har en noget anderledes svær opgave med en udekamp hos Peterborough, som altså skal vindes samtidig med at Carlisle skal levere hvad der i givet fald bliver sæsonens helt store overraskelse.
I bunden vandt Burton en måske afgørende 3-2 sejr hjemme mod Reading, men kan stadig ikke afgøre det selv da Cheltenham lige bag dem har en kommende midtugekamp i baghånden. De tre points til The Brewers sendt til gengæld både Port Vale og Fleetwood Town ned i League Two. Kampen om at undgå den fjerde og sidste billet ned i den fjerdebedste række står dermed nu udelukkende mellem Burton og Cheltenham, der på tirsdag tager imod Peterborough. Vinder de den har de selv skæbnen i egne hænder. Pointtab sender serveretten over til Burton.
Kommentarer fra head coach John Mousinho
“It was the most important part of the day and it was absolutely amazing – it made for a special afternoon. After the highs of Tuesday night, we were able to follow it up with that and again it was here at Fratton Park. It would have been nice to lift the trophy off the back of a win, but I suppose you can’t have everything! I’m sure it will create a lot of special memories and that’s the way it should be because it’s the culmination of a very successful season. It was also important for all the lads to be able to celebrate on the pitch with their families, who have supported them and made sacrifices.”
“I thought Wigan deserved to win because we were really poor for the first 45 minutes. We didn’t get the press right, but it was actually a lot more than that and the first goal really summed us up. I thought we looked alright in possession and not very good out of it. When we lost the ball, we were punished. We looked much better and more aggressive after the break, although it was an awful second goal to concede. We did get one back from Kusini and created plenty of chances, but just could not find that equaliser. There’s disappointment because we wanted to go out on a high at Fratton Park. Ultimately, though, it doesn’t matter too much.”
Et par ord fra Sean Raggett
“It feels absolutely fantastic – I said I wanted to get this club promoted when I arrived five years ago and now we’ve done it. Winning the league on top of that is absolutely fantastic and it’s difficult to find the words to describe it. There were some great scenes at the end when we were able to lift the trophy and celebrate with the fans. I know it wasn’t a great result, but what happened afterwards was brilliant and all feels a little bit surreal. I’ve seen other teams do it over the years and you get jealous, so it’s nice that it’s us getting to experience it. My daughter was out there afterwards and those are the things you’ll always remember – although she was a bit upset because it was quite loud! This week has been carnage and you expect that because of how passionate and well supported this club is. But it’s been absolutely fantastic and you have to enjoy it. It’s been class and when the fans were singing my name, I felt quite emotional.”
League One, Fratton Park, 20. april 2024
Portsmouth – Wigan Athletic 1-2 (0-1)
22. minut: 0-1 Luke Chambers
83. minut: 0-2 Josh Magennis
85. minut: 1-2 Kusini Yengi
Opstillingen (4-2-3-1): Norris; Rafferty, Raggett, Shaughnessy, Ogilvie (Sparkes ‘77); Moxon (Anjorin ‘63), Pack (anfører); Kamara (Lane ‘46), Saydee (Yengi ‘63), Lang (Peart-Harris ‘46); Bishop
På bænken: Macey, Evans, Sparkes, Anjorin, Lane, Yengi og Peart-Harris
Advarsler: Lang og Pack
Udvisning: Ingen
Tilskuere: 20.202, hvoraf 526 var medrejsende Latics supportere
Interview efter kampen med John Mousinho
Kampens Højdepunkter
Sådan så det ud da Pompey løftede League One trofæet
