please log in to view this image A heavily changed Portsmouth took to Fratton Park for their Capital One Cup first round clash with Championship side Charlton, with many changes to the side who drew 1-1 with Mansfield earlier in the week. Patrick Agyemang drops to the bench as Charlie Sheringham makes his Pompey debut alongside Ashley Harris, who was thought to be the object of Brian McDermott’s interest – the Reading manager watching on from the stands. Portsmouth almost had a somewhat lucky start, with a Romain Padovani free kick inexplicably headed inches over his own crossbar by Rhoys Wiggins, but the visitors survived. Ashley Harris had Portsmouth’s best chance of the opening 25 minutes, but he scuffed his shot wide of the goal after being fed by his strike partner Sheringham. Johnny Ertl came close with a free kick minutes later, but the ball sailed wide of the mark. 6 years ago, this was a Premier League fixture, with both teams falling some way since then, and the lack of attacking quality shone through in this match despite the ability of Bradley Wright-Phillips, both sets of defenders being more than equipped to deal with their counterparts. Meaningful attacks on goal were few and far between, and the frustration of the first half was encapsulated by Alonso, shooting woefully over with a speculative 20 yard volley which ended up halfway up the stand behind Phil Smith’s goal. Despite this, Portsmouth woke up towards the end of the half. A slick passing move between Harris, Padovani, Kilbey and Thornhill ended in Kilbey powering an effort goalwards, only to be met by the arm of Ben Hamer, making his first real save of the afternoon. However, all Pompey’s hard work was undone on the stroke of half time when that man Wright-Phillips found himself in some space to net Charlton a perfectly timed goal. Portsmouth, to their credit, did come back stronger after half time, with Rogers bringing on Agyemang for the disappointing Sheringham who did not live up to his namesake, and his side began to look lively, however Harris could not find the target early on. Padovani once again controlled the midfield area for Pompey, and he was the next to come close, sending a crashing 25 yard piledriver the wrong side of Hamer’s goal. Just as it was looking like a frustrating afternoon for Pompey, up stepped Ashley Harris to score a curling 20 yard screamer that rattled off Hamer’s crossbar before nestling in the back of the net. The strike clearly delighted Harris and the onlooking McDermott – with Pompey now looking like they will have an even more difficult task of keeping the youngster at Fratton Park. Pompey now definitely were in the ascendency, with Harris again coming close and forcing the Charlton stopper to divert the ball wide for a corner. Lady luck sadly turned sour for Portsmouth, as moments after making their final substitution they were reduced to 10 men, as striker Patrick Agyemang was forced off after picking up an injury in a collision with Alonso, making Pompey’s task an uphill one. Despite their numerical disadvantage, Pompey matched their opponents through the first half of extra time, Romain Padovani with the best effort on goal, another long range effort expertly tipped wide by the Charlton keeper, who was relieved to see Ashley Harris’ effort fly over moments later. The second half of extra time continued in the same ilk, with Charlton pressing but unable to make their numerical advantage count, despite the hosts beginning to tire – Alonso once again firing high and wide from distance as the spectre of penalties reared its ugly head, Adam Webster missing the all-important spot kick to give Charlton a 4-3 penalty win. A harsh, unceremonious defeat for Rogers’ boys, yet they can take heart from hanging on against more disciplined, higher league opposition.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikel_Alonso Although, I'd feel somewhat less bitter about losing the game if it was Xabi Alonso
please log in to view this image 11th August 2013 Portsmouth have increased their attacking options with yesterday's loan signing of Burnley's young striker Danny Ings. The former Bournemouth player has signed on a 3 month loan till November, with Pompey able to extend that should the striker impress at Fratton Park. He will be familiar to Portsmouth fans as one of the scorers in Burnley's 5-1 thrashing of the South Coast side back in March 2012, scoring his first Burnley goal in the process. The signing comes after the double injury of Patrick Agyemang, with the striker forced off in Wednesday's Capital One Cup exit at Charlton with a dead leg - leading Rogers to sign a fifth attacking player to decrease the chance of being caught short again. The striker will be available for Pompey's third match in a week when the side play Scunthorpe on Saturday, and looks to prove his worth to the Pompey hierarchy. Pompey have also been handed a home tie in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy against fellow League 2 side Wycombe. The match will be played at Fratton Park on August the 30th.
please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Danny Ings led a host of changes following Portsmouthâs wearying Capital one Cup defeat against Charlton just 3 days ago, with Danny East making his Pompey debut, and Jed Wallace making his first appearance of the season in front of a packed Fratton Park; over 17,000 turning out to see Pompeyâs first home league match. The game began in a furious fashion, Mark Clattenburg allowing play to go on after Ryan Dickson clattered Danny East, forcing the Pompey man off on his debut. From the ensuing attack, Nathan Eccleston played on despite calls for him to put the ball out, passing the ball low into the box for Collins to roll the ball past an incensed Simon Eastwood. This clearly riled the Portsmouth players and fans, with the team wound up and making mistakes, Nathan Eccleston came close to increasing the Ironsâ lead moments later, screwing his shot wide of the upright. It became 1 injury apiece in the 17th minute however, as Aidan White challenged Chris Herd for the ball on the far right, with the Scunthorpe man unable to continue; Eddie Nolan coming on in his place. Pompey just couldnât get a foothold in the game early on, and the deficit increased midway through the first half, Nathan Eccleston coolly slotting the ball past Eastwood to leave Pompey in a real mess â the south coast side looking jaded after their midweek cup exit. Despite this, the team rallied round â Scott Wagstaff looking the most dangerous for the hosts, forcing a good save from point blank range after a deflected Aidan White cross. Eccleston almost added a second to his tally just past the half hour mark, but his effort was blocked well by an outrushing Matt Thornhill. With Pompey in danger of losing discipline, Bobby Grant his the crossbar with a freekick moments later. New striker Danny Ings had the best of Portsmouthâs first half chances, forcing a good save out of the visiting keeper Turner despite being marginally offside. Ings came close again minutes later, but his 18 yard volley flew just wide of the post. The game became more of a St Johnâs Ambulance fair as the first half ended, as Michael OâConnor was stretchered off after a rash tackle from Matt Thornhill, which rightly earned the Portsmouth midfielder a yellow card; Niall Canavan replacing the injured player at the beginning of injury time. Pompey finally broke through just before the whistle, with on loan striker Ings driving the ball low past the keeper to notch a debut goal. His strike partner Agyemang almost completed the comeback just after the restart, but Mark Clattenburg disallowed the goal for a foul on Canavan in the build-up. Just after the break, however, things turned sour once more as Eccleston broke away again, slotting past Eastwood after showing Sonny Bradley a clean set of heels. Pompey were on the ropes and in danger of completely losing imploding, however they were thrown a lifeline on 66 minutes when Matt Thornhill poked home, adding a second assist of the game for Aidan White. Substitute Adam Webster had the best of the late opportunities, heading over from a corner deep into injury time, but it was too little, too late as the final whistle blew moments later. In truth, Portsmouth looked deflated after their midweek loss, with some pundits going as far as saying the 3-2 loss flattered the home side somewhat.
please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Portsmouth’s third League 2 game took them to the Newport Stadium to face a Newport County side determined to make a real go of their first season out of the Blue Square Bet Premier League. The sides sat level on 1 point each going into the game, with Pompey resting Danny Ings after his goalscoring debut; the proven partnership of Harris and Agyemang preferred for this clash. The away side were definitely favourites for this floodlit fixture, and they certainly had the best of the opening 10 minutes, although lacked an end product for their efforts, as Newport’s defensive players showed they are no pushovers early on. In the centre of midfield Romain Padovani continued to impress, and it was his precise ball to Patrick Agyemang that sourced Portsmouth’s opener – the Ghanaian poking the ball past Potter in the home goal on 23 minutes. The hosts dug in however, and could have levelled proceedings on the half hour mark, had striker Craig McAllister’s header dropped an inch or 2 lower below Simon Eastwood’s crossbar. Portsmouth’s second came in fortuitous and unexpected circumstances, as late in the half Ashley Harris latched on to a shocking David Pipe backpass, as Potter was left in no man’s land and Pompey were left 2 up at the break. The second half continued much the same, with Pompey passing the ball around impressively and looking good value for their lead – David Pipe atoning for his earlier error by superbly blocking Agyemang’s 58th minute effort. Agyemang and Harris were looking every bit the perfect strike options, and they all but sealed this position just after the hour, linking up well before Agyemang coolly slotted the ball past Potter for a third for Pompey. The evening became even sourer for Newport on 71 minutes, as the rollercoaster performance of David Pipe took another nosedive; the defender receiving his marching orders for a second bookable offence as Patrick Agyemang tumbled just outside the box – Romain Padovani coming close from the resulting free kick. Pompey’s numerical advantage showed towards the end as the hosts tired, with Padovani again testing Potter with a long range effort, but the away side couldn’t find a fourth. 3-0 Pompey was the final score, allowing Rogers to enjoy and savour an efficient performance to give Portsmouth their first win of the season.
please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Southend visited Fratton Park for Portsmouth’s fourth game of the campaign, with both teams level on points but Pompey enjoying a two goal cushion on their visitors thanks to their 3-0 victory at Newport earlier in the week. Pompey started brightest, with Agyemang once more linking up well with Scott Wagstaff and Aidan White on the wings, with the former heading just wide early on. The home side should have opened the scoring on 9 minutes, Danny Ings teeing up Patrick Agyemang who left the fans disappointed by skying his effort over the bar. On the whole, the match seemed lacking in attacking prowess until 20 minutes in, when Ings seized upon a chance presented to him by Wagstaff, nodding home from 6 yards past the hapless Morris in the Shrimpers goal. Despite near total domination on the field, Pompey couldn’t capitalise and went into the break with just a slender 1 goal advantage – and the second half finishing display wasn’t much better either until the 60th minute, when Danny Ings scored his second after an incisive break away by Agyemang. Arguably Southend’s first real chance came in the 67th minute, Ryan Hall’s curling free kick momentarily scaring Pompey stopper Eastwood, who was relieved to watch the ball fly just over his crossbar. With just 3 minutes remaining on the clock, Scott Wagstaff popped up to slide home Pompey’s third to give Rogers’ side a second successive 3-0 win, and to crown another impressive Portsmouth display in front of a solid home crown at Fratton Park. If anything, a dull game for the neutral spectator, with Portsmouth giving a real insight into their ambitions for the season.
please log in to view this image 24th August 2013 New Portsmouth manager Olly Rogers says he is 'pleased' with the manner in which his team has started life in League 2. Rogers' side currently sit 7th in League 2 after 4 games, comfortably winning the last 2 games by a 3-0 margin. Despite many pundits touting Portsmouth as potential league winners, the manager is happy to keep his - and his players - feet firmly on the ground. "I'm pleased with the way we've gone about our first few games, in the last couple of games against Newport and Southend we've really put them to the sword with good finishing. Danny [Ings] has shown his calibre and stepped up well, and I'm delighted with the way young Ash [Harris] has made the transition to first team" - said Rogers, clearly happy with his team's goalscoring exploits. "The result against Charlton was unfortunate and probably did have a big effect on the team going into the Scunthorpe game, which was a double blow for us. But the lads picked themselves up well and we hope to really kickstart something special here" Meanwhile, Danny Ings made the nPower League 2 Team of the Week, due to his man of the match performance, scoring a brace against Southend on Saturday. Ings has made an instant impact at Pompey, scoring 3 goals in his first 2 appearances for the club.
please log in to view this image 26th August 2013 Portsmouth manager Olly Rogers is reportedly 'keeping tabs' on Norwich wide midfielder Josh Dawkin, with the Welsh 21 year old reportedly interested in joining the club on loan. The left midfielder would join a host of new Summer signings at Fratton Park, as Pompey look to sign players in order to stabilise themselves in League 2. This potential signing shows again Rogers' preference to bleed young talent into the squad, who have an average age 3 years below the League 2 standard; indeed, the outfit boasts only 3 players over the age of 30: captain Ertl, striker Agyemang and goalkeeper Phil Smith, at the relatively young age of 32, hold that dubious honour. When pressed, however, Rogers remained coy about the speculation: "Will we sign him? Well, we're keeping tabs on the player at the moment, but there are a good number of players on our radar and still available for free or possibly on loan. Will we sign any of these? Only time will tell - we're only interested in areas we can strengthen and I think where we are right now in terms of our squad is just about the best we can be in the circumstances at the club"
We will be playing Newport County next season. Any remember the old Somerton Park stadium with it's black and bright orange decor?
please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Portsmouth captain Johnny Ertl was the most notable absentee from the starting line up to face Chesterfield, as a cold forced him out of his centre back slot, to be replaced by Shaun Cooper. Danny Ings retained his forwards position ahead of Harris, with the youngster making his way to the bench. For league leaders Chesterfield, new signing Marcel Seip played his debut after his midweek free transfer from Plymouth, with midfielder Alexandre Mendy looking to be their most potent threat. It was the home side who showed their promotion credentials early on, Jamie Proctor hitting the post in the opening 10 minutes; Shaun Cooper happy to concede a corner from the rebound. Pompey came into the game on the back of successive 3-0 wins, yet the visitors looked nervous here against a disciplined Chesterfield side, as Jamie Proctor again came close with a snapshot 18 minutes in. However it was Portsmouth who scored the opener – Tommy Lee having what can only be described as a disaster in goal, dropping a seemingly innocuous Scott Wagstaff cross at the feet of Patrick Agyemang, leaving the Pompey striker with the simple task of rolling the ball into an empty net, which he did with consummate ease. The goal galvanized Pompey, who scored a second minutes later via the same source. Wagstaff again finding Agyemang in the box for his second goal of the day. Despite their deficit, Chesterfield didn’t let their heads drop, and could’ve found a route back into the game on 36 minutes, with Pompey’s marking slacking at the crucial moment allowing Mendy to head tantalisingly close, Eastwood in the Portsmouth goal relieved to see the ball fly just over his crossbar. Although the game was by no means a classic by half time, Portsmouth went into the break with a commanding 2-0 lead. Indeed, so much was their dominance that they came out 5 minutes early for the second half. Defensively, Pompey were rock solid, despite the absence of captain Ertl. Cooper and Webster in the centre of defence dominated the aerial game, and they forced the hosts into taking most of their chances from distance as Jack Lester skied their first real effort of the second half. Chesterfield had more to worry about in the second half, as top scorer Jack Lester was forced off after a Yassin Moutaouakil challenge; Jamie Mole coming on in the striker’s place. It soon became 2 for Chesterfield, unfortunately for them in terms of injury, as Dwayne Mattis joined Lester on the injury table, effectively putting the Spireites down to 10 men for the remainder – allowing Rogers to shift to a 4-5-1 to close out the game. This had the desired effect for Pompey, with a Jamie Proctor half chance the closest either team got to scoring in the dying minutes. Another industrious performance from Pompey, who take maximum points from their last 3 games, not conceding a goal in the process.
please log in to view this image For the first round of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy against Wycombe, Portsmouth boss Olly Rogers made significant changes to his unbeaten side, giving rare starts to no less than 5 players, with a full debut for striker Jon-Paul Pittman, who partnered in-form Patrick Agyemang up front for Pompey. Wycombe’s Nicholas Bignall went into the game suffering something of a goal drought, having notched up almost 400 minutes of football without finding the back of the net, yet it was his corner that set up the opener, as Gareth Ainsworth headed home from 10 yards. James Tunnicliffe was fortunate to remain on the pitch just minutes later, tripping Patrick Agyemang just outside the box, with replays showing Pompey had a case for dismissal as he looked to be the last man, but referee Foy deemed the offence only worth of a yellow card. Pompey were lucky not to go 2 down when, bizarrely, both East and Webster sustained simultaneous injuries – Wycombe couldn’t capitalise however, and indeed almost conceded in that time, Tamas Kádár unlucky to miss with a header. Considering their recent form, Portsmouth were largely disappointing in the first half; Ashley Harris’ wayward 35th minute strike symbolic of the performance. Despite this, they should have levelled the scores just before the break, but Patrick Agyemang fluffed his lines at the critical moment after great skill in the build-up, with the striker only producing a tame effort straight at Bull in the Wanderers goal. The second half began with more of the same, although Sandell’s near miss from a sublime free kick provided at least one moment of quality in the match. Bignall should’ve put the game to bed around the hour mark, when put through after a Danny East slip at right back, but his effort came back off the advancing Phil Smith, the keeper making a solid save to divert the ball from danger. Indeed, that proved to be East’s last action of the game, with the earlier injury forcing him off the field. One of the game’s biggest talking points came up soon later, Donnelly extremely fortunate to not give away a penalty for a foul on Aidan White which Foy deemed just outside the area. To their credit, Pompey battled away and were always knocking on the door, and the introduction of Scott Wagstaff provided a creative outlet, although the final product remained lacking. In all, a disappointing result, however the onus will now be on Pompey to achieve in the league, with the FA Cup the only possible chance of a giant killing this season for Rogers’ boys.
please log in to view this image 1st September 2013 please log in to view this image Portsmouth's Patrick Agyemang has won the nPower League 2 Player of the Month award for August. The frontman has scored an impressive 4 goals in his last 5 games, and has been an integral part of the team that has pushed Pompey to their impressive league standing, picking up no less than 2 man of the match awards in the process and impressing Pompey fans with his accurate finishing. Agyemang will doubtless hope to continue his goalscoring run of form, which sees him take joint 2nd in the goalscoring charts, 1 goal ahead of fellow Portsmouth striker Danny Ings. He beat Rochdale's Jean-Louis Akpa-Akpro and Dagenham & Redbridge's Scott Doe into 2nd and 3rd respectively.
please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Portsmouth boss Olly Rogers made a number of changes from the side that crashed out of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy to Wycombe last week. Ings and Agyemang returned to the side for the visit of Morecambe to Fratton Park, as the Pompey manager looked to get back to winning ways in September. Morecambe opted for a packed 5 man midfield, and they stuck to their task well early on, preventing Pompey passing the ball around and giving the home side little time on the ball, limiting their forward options. When Portsmouth did get forward the Morecambe defence were strong – Will Haining blocking Scott Wagstaff’s dangerous driven cross just ahead of a lurking Patrick Agyemang. The perennially impressive Padovani was living up to his plaudits early on, and it was his tackle who set up Pompey’s best attack of the opening exchanges – Kilbey shooting straight at the visiting keeper Roche from Moutaouakil’s delivery into the box. Wagstaff had been one of the driving forces in Portsmouth’s start to the season, and he was unlucky not to put them ahead on 20 minutes, forcing Roche into a fingertip save after a good run from the right that had Pompey and Morecambe fans alike applauding. The home side did have cause for concern midway through the first half however, as in-form striker Agyemang was forced off after an off the ball collision with Morecambe’s McCready; Ashley Harris came on to replace the stricken forward. A good chance for Morecambe fell to Phil Airey just past the half hour mark, but he was unfortunate not to test Eastwood with a wickedly curling freekick from 25 yards. 0-0 was the way it stayed till half time, although just into first half stoppage time Jevons struck Eastwood’s post with a deft flick from the through ball of Izak Reid, the Morecambe striker looked on in disbelief however ad captain Ertl cleared the danger. It could be said that Pompey looked nervous early on in the second half, however any fears of a repeat of the 1-0 loss to Wycombe were allayed when Tom Kilbey popped up with a 53rd minute header, after good work on the right hand side by Yassin Moutaouakil. The relief was clear to see around Fratton Park, as the team looked to find their natural rhythm once more. Portsmouth should’ve increased their lead on the hour, after a great ball by the substitute Harris was latched onto by Wagstaff, the Pompey striker unlucky to see his shot deflect just wide of the post. The home side were definitely in the ascendancy, with Harris the next to go close, being foiled by a sprawling Roche when he in truth should’ve increased the Portsmouth lead. In truth, the second half was dominated by Portsmouth, with Morecambe attacks few and far between. Their disappointment was shown by Airey, who blasted the ball away in a display of frustration after being flagged for offside, earning a yellow card in the process. Pompey saw the game out well from then on, with Thornhill and Harris going close in the dying minutes. Although the performance wasn’t particularly vintage, the result was a satisfying one for Rogers after the midweek cup exit, with the team focusing on the task well.
