MATCHWATCH : Portsmouth (a)

[Jinx]

Fear a heavy defeat here.

As predicted...

A stopped clock is right twice a day, more often than you

[Mid Sussex Royal]

We seem to have had an issue for years with keepers conceding at the near post, going all the way back to Federici who was prone to it, its basic positioning, schoolboy stuff.

[skipper]

No shame in losing to the team top of the league.

We will turn this around on Tuesday!

After the last 2 losses, we've gone on 6 game unbeaten runs. So, please no slip ups against the next 6. Though I see Derby and Cambridge being challenges. And the others won't necessarily be easy. Expecting a win against Carlisle, as everyone is beating them. Hoping for 3 points against Port Vale to make up for today.

Last seasons final table was tight. Literally 3 points between 23 & 19th. I'm just wondering if 46 points will be enough this season, and if/when we may make it? 6 from the next 9 would be excellent way to start.

[NathStPaul]

Fear a heavy defeat here.

As predicted...

A stopped clock is right twice a day, more often than you

Pipe down chump.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Probably wise I have a pint lined-up with John Anthony ‘Portsmouth FC’ Westwood tomorrow ….so mein host says

Did you keep any weapons from your army days you might use on him?

wasn’t, he’’s a puddy cat.

Oh the bantz at 4-0 down

[Crowbar6753]

Nothing to worry about right now. we just played the Champions Elect off the park playing superb fast flowing attacking football for the first 40mins!! We really should and could have been 3-0 up. But that's football and that's why we're down at the bottom and they're up the top.
We missed our chances and they took theirs!!

If we can replicate that 40 min spell of football into some of our remaining games we should be just fine, however, we really need Smith to hit the net again and go on one of those scoring runs of his. Button had a mare, and that happens to keepers.

We really need this take-over to gather pace and get sorted!! Bindon, Wing, Craig and Azeez really are very good players at this level, and some on the football played today was of the best I've seen from a Reading side for a long time. To lose these players would be criminal.

A new owner in place and we can offer new contracts and build around these guys. I really believe that with another half decent striker, a decent goalkeeper and somebody in the mold of Azeez on the left and this team would stroll through this league next season.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Funny reading the comments from the Pompey fans on Twitter you would have thought they had won the Champions League haha MUPPETS

sat amongst them, they were mighty relieved to survive the first half hour, their manager was very complimentary towards us after the game on one of their local radio stations. They’d been in a scrap.

….and yes, the ball did cross the line (sat pretty much in line with it, the locals called it was across the line)

[Snowflake Royal]

If you`re going to the league leaders your keeper needs to be on top of his game, he wasn`t, appeared to be a half decent performance and 4-1 probably flattered the home side.

There's no probably about it, massively flattered them.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Got to I hate Pompey fans with a passion - what a vile fanbase. I support Reading because I grew up there, so perhaps if I'd been born in Portsmouth I'd support them. When you look at it like that, us football fans should all be reasonably alike; we all have a similar love of the game and similar reasons for choosing our team. So how come some teams produce utter cnuts of fans? Why do clubs like Bolton, Vale, WBA and Brighton produce decent fans and clubs like Portsmouth, Millwall and Leeds total bellends?

Though in the interest of balance, we have some pretty detestable fans on the Twittersphere too.

[Ascotexgunner]

They have a whole thread dedicated to us on Portsmouth's Truebluearmy.com

Starting with.....

"What a bunch of bitter and twisted oxf*rd they are.
Well worth a watch.
Some cnut even belittled Pompey as a city when he lives in oxf*rd Reading!
They are really sore losers and frankly it's a fantastic read.
They are each eating lemons!"

And that is one of the nicer comments.......

Nice bunch.....

[tmesis]

Though in the interest of balance, we have some pretty detestable fans on the Twittersphere too.

Let's face it - the twitter spats are our bellend fans who think they are being funny v their bellend fans who think they are being funny. The odds of anyone coming out it with any credit aren't good.

[AthleticoSpizz]

They have a whole thread dedicated to us on Portsmouth's Truebluearmy.com

Starting with.....

"What a bunch of bitter and twisted oxf*rd they are.
Well worth a watch.
Some cnut even belittled Pompey as a city when he lives in oxf*rd Reading!
They are really sore losers and frankly it's a fantastic read.
They are each eating lemons!"

And that is one of the nicer comments.......

Nice bunch.....

chill, where there’s a Yin, there’s a Yang.

Totally different experience today.

It’s football, there’s bantz, get through it

[stealthpapes]

ftr - ship anson, old custom house, still & west, bridge tavern, wellington (twice), sally port, dolphin, pembroke & home via one of the more life affirming kebab trips ever. Portsmouth is a great away sesh.

The game - 30 minutes of liquid football, then that. Could have been 3-3. That's why they are top. We did't give up, so I think its a teaching point. Selles knows the score wit the fans. Good lad.

[AthleticoSpizz]

Big For the Ships Anson, been there done that…as is the Old Custom House etc

Just the Newcome Arms today tho’

[Stranded]

Ah we lost, no major concern.

There were key moments that went against us in the 1st half.

First, Kelvin gets to the keeper and the ball but his poke hits the keepers heel & stays with him. Luck for them else 1-0 for us.

Second, should have been a red. Honest think the fact we broke meant he rightly played advantage & then felt he couldn't send him off so went with yellow. Should have been red.

Thirdly their opening goal, shot was deflected of Yiadom's boot, changed the direction of the ball & that's what beat Button. He'll be gutted it still beat him but no deflection, no goal and we head in 0-0.

Heads went down as we hadn't taken chances and we tried to play too quickly 2nd half, made 2 mistakes, Mola over committing & Kelvin's tripping over trying to take a quick FK to kill the game off.

[The Cap]

ftr - ship anson, old custom house, still & west, bridge tavern, wellington (twice), sally port, dolphin, pembroke & home via one of the more life affirming kebab trips ever. Portsmouth is a great away sesh.

The game - 30 minutes of liquid football, then that. Could have been 3-3. That's why they are top. We did't give up, so I think its a teaching point. Selles knows the score wit the fans. Good lad.

Nice work stealth. The Anson's a well known haunt just o/side the dockyard and then you've made it over to Old Pompey. Regardless of footie allegiances, the views from the Still & West are superb. And as for the Pembroke, proper old school community boozer. Sounds as though your beverage tour was well thought out. In terms of historical interest, there are tunnels that run between the boozers over Old Pompey, so that when the press gangs used to go round the pubs, the quick witted ones would lift the hatches and disappear. And not a lot of people know that

[windermereROYAL]

What a really likable fan base they have down there, naturally we always get a bit of flak when we lose, but nothing anywhere near this, it`s off the scale.

[stealthpapes]

ftr - ship anson, old custom house, still & west, bridge tavern, wellington (twice), sally port, dolphin, pembroke & home via one of the more life affirming kebab trips ever. Portsmouth is a great away sesh.

The game - 30 minutes of liquid football, then that. Could have been 3-3. That's why they are top. We did't give up, so I think its a teaching point. Selles knows the score wit the fans. Good lad.

Nice work stealth. The Anson's a well known haunt just o/side the dockyard and then you've made it over to Old Pompey. Regardless of footie allegiances, the views from the Still & West are superb. And as for the Pembroke, proper old school community boozer. Sounds as though your beverage tour was well thought out. In terms of historical interest, there are tunnels that run between the boozers over Old Pompey, so that when the press gangs used to go round the pubs, the quick witted ones would lift the hatches and disappear. And not a lot of people know that

cheers, and lovely historical nugget, appreciated.

[Clyde1998]

Ah we lost, no major concern.

There were key moments that went against us in the 1st half.

First, Kelvin gets to the keeper and the ball but his poke hits the keepers heel & stays with him. Luck for them else 1-0 for us.

Second, should have been a red. Honest think the fact we broke meant he rightly played advantage & then felt he couldn't send him off so went with yellow. Should have been red.

Thirdly their opening goal, shot was deflected of Yiadom's boot, changed the direction of the ball & that's what beat Button. He'll be gutted it still beat him but no deflection, no goal and we head in 0-0.

Heads went down as we hadn't taken chances and we tried to play too quickly 2nd half, made 2 mistakes, Mola over committing & Kelvin's tripping over trying to take a quick FK to kill the game off.

We also should've gone 1-0 up when Mukairu flicked over from six yards out.

I don't know if anyone's seen the penalty claim back - whether it was handball or not? I agree that challenge on Ehib(?) should've been a red card; almost seems to elbow him in the face.

On the goals:

1. I'm not sure it did get a deflection, but swerved awkwardly away from Button.
2. They got into the box far too easily. Their man wasn't being closed down and got past Mbengue far too easily. Great finish, but was far too simple. In the build up, their winger got past Mola too easily on the halfway line.
3. Kelvin tries to take a quick free kick, but we just needed to slow the game down and regroup - we just needed to settle. It came at a time when Portsmouth were on top and growing in confidence. Another great finish, but again was allowed to get the shot away too easily.
4. Button should've been holding on to that cross. Another good finish to sneak the ball into the near post first time.

In the second half, Wing hitting the bar from the free-kick and Smith forcing their keeper into a good save when one-on-one. We eventually got a goal we deserved, but the game was long gone at that point.

I'm not overly concerned. Portsmouth are top of the league and we had enough chances to get something from that game. A side that's top of a league will typically take their chances when they come - which is what happened yesterday. We just have to pick ourselves up at beat Port Vale on Tuesday.

[TiagoIlori]

One of their fans decided to use a homophobic slur to describe one Reading fan, they’re quite keen to tell us that it’s only a minority. Funny that.