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Pompey were left fuming
after conceding deep into stoppage-time to lose a controversial Boxing Day
contest at Watford. It all looked so promising when Zak Swanson’s neat early strike saw them go in ahead at the interval against opponents who were unbeaten on home soil. But Edo Kayembe levelled from the spot following a penalty decision given by the assistant for a challenge outside the area. The Blues still looked like they would leave with a point, only for substitute Rocco Vata to strike with just seconds remaining. John Mousinho stuck with the same side that convincingly beat Coventry on home soil just before Christmas. But Abdoulaye Kamara and Sammy Silvera were back from injury and illness respectively to take their place on the bench. There was an early scare when the visitors lost possession in the middle of the pitch and Daniel Jebbison broke clear, only to fire straight at Nicolas Schmid. And Watford continued to look threatening – particularly on the break – in the opening stages of the contest. But the Blues quickly began to settle and cause a few problems of their own, with Ryan Porteous doing a good job of putting off Callum Lang as he tried to convert a Josh Murphy delivery. The deadlock was broken moments later, though, courtesy of another ball into the box by the lively Murphy. Mattie Pollock failed to get it to safety and SWANSON sent a sweet angled strike into the bottom corner on the half-volley. The Hornets had a chance to level on 14 minutes, but Giorgi Chakvetadze elected to take a touch rather than a shot and the ball ran safely through for Schmid to gather. Murphy sent an ambitious effort wide at the other end, but it was mostly the home side on the attack for the rest of the half. They did not really come close to finding an equaliser, however, with the Pompey defence – Swanson and Connor Ogilvie in particular – doing a great job of protecting Schmid. And when the keeper was called into action to deal with a firm Porteous header, the defender was flagged offside anyway. Half Time: Watford 0 Pompey 1 Mousinho made a change shortly after the restart, as Ritchie was replaced out on the left by Paddy Lane. Watford made their intentions clear from the start, looking to attack their opponents at every opportunity. It was not all one-way traffic, though, as Pompey made some inroads of their own in the final third of the pitch. But the visitors were left furious when the Hornets were awarded a penalty in controversial fashion just before the hour mark. Kwadwo Baah went down under a Freddie Potts challenge and referee Geoff Eltringham allowed play to continue. His assistant asked for a word, however, and after a brief chat, a penalty was awarded – despite replays appearing to show the incident occurring outside the box. Kayembe emphatically converted the penalty, with Pompey’s frustrations leading to yellow cards for Marlon Pack, Schmid and Mousinho. They were followed into the book by Murphy and Lang for late challenges, as the Blues struggled to keep tempers in check. Watford, meanwhile, suddenly saw their confidence rise and it took a fine diving save from Schmid to turn a Baah effort around the post. Jebbison then played a free-kick across to Kayembe, whose low shot was diverted wide by team-mate Pollock. A double switch followed from Mousinho, who brought on Terry Devlin and Owen Moxon for Swanson and Lang. Moxon almost took advantage of some dithering defending to restore Pompey’s lead, but their opponents were able to scramble the ball behind. Instead it was Watford left celebrating when Moussa Sissoko charged through and the ball eventually ran lose for Vata to slot into the net. Baah showed a distinct lack of class by taunting the away fans at the final whistle and it proved to be a foolish decision, as he had already been booked and was sent off by Eltringham. |
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