As 600+ Pompey fans made the trip across the Severn Bridge, the dream of a Wembley return was just three games away. Newport County being the destination, a club managed by former Portsmouth player, Justin Edinburgh.
The game became an early nightmare for the fans that travelled around 6 hours, the length of the return trip from Fratton to South Wales, as Bondz N’Gala’s fifth minute mistake led to Washington heading the ball into an open net. It seems to me that Carson didn’t conduct his usual barking orders, of which he seems to be known for, as he was going to gather the ball. N’Gala, heading the ball past his own keeper, for the opposition striker to pop into the goal. A little like Fernando Torres’ goal against Manchester City, with Nastatic and Hart having a moment of madness, costing the England goalkeeper his place in City’s starting XI.
With the problem of conceding late goals quashed, it seems that the new issue is conceding early goals. Guy Whittingham’s men have now conceded 4 goals in the first twenty minutes of 3 games, as of the Torquay match, with Jordan Chapell scoring in the very first minute. To me, it seems we need to work rigorously on sorting these defensive errors out. Perhaps it’s a mentality issue? Are we not ready for matches, lacking preparation, or just slack? Whatever it is, it needs to be sorted!
Listening to the game on Tuesday night, Micah Hall, Portsmouth’s Engagement Manager, seemed utterly disappointed with the team’s overall performance. Going 2-0 down in a game that is winnable, within 20 minutes, would damage anybody’s morale, but that is down to the manager to fix at half time. With 20 minutes to go, Newport County were reduced to 10 men, captain David Pipe receiving a straight red card for a challenge on Rickie Holmes. Anyone would have thought ‘this is it’, and the team would have pushed on for the next 20 minutes, pressuring the 10-man County side.
How very wrong they were. The sending off of Newport’s captain seemed to spur them on to play around their skipper’s absence, as they piled the pressure on Pompey. This, again, led to a defensive error, allowing Conor Washington to double his goal tally, with 7 minutes of normal play remaining. The writing was on the wall for Pompey, who had been abysmal to say the least; Wembley Way was no more.
I was expecting the team to rally round, and at least clinch a goal from a game they had produced almost nothing from, for the away fans that travelled hundreds of miles on a cold Tuesday night. Alas, it was not meant to be.
Something needs to be done with Whittingham’s squad. Be it extensive training into why these goals are being conceded, and how they can be prevented. It’s goals conceded in the first 20 minutes that tend to kill teams off, and if we continue to concede this many over the Christmas period, we could find ourselves battling the drop-zone once again.
Nonetheless, it was a cup game. It was one we had a chance at, but it wasn’t the league. The fact that it was the JPT, is somewhat a relief in my eyes, as we now have another six months or so to focus on league performances, string together some results, and keep the squad at full fitness. At the end of the day, I’d rather have a successful league campaign, and be out of every cup, than to win some silverware and struggle for a place in the Football League.
Onward and upwards, in Pompey We Trust!
Written by Harry Davis
Harry tweets at @MrDavishPFC.
Follow @VitalPortsmouth.
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