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Josh Murphy’s seventh goal
of the season was enough for Pompey to beat Blackburn in a scrappy
Championship contest at Fratton Park. They were bright before the break and the winger’s neatly taken effort ensured a deserved lead at the interval. But even though the quality took a noticeable dip in the second half, Rovers never really came close to threatening an equaliser. John Mousinho made two changes from the side that were beaten at Preston before the international break. Zak Swanson and Matt Ritchie both returned to the starting line-up, with Terry Devlin dropping to the bench and Kusini Yengi missing out with a hamstring injury. Recent arrival Alexander Milošević made his first appearance in a matchday squad, being named among the substitutes, along with the fit-again Jordan Williams and Christian Saydee. There was a frantic start to proceedings in the spring south coast sunshine, although neither side managed to convert promising moments into chances during the opening stages. Murphy was certainly looking lively, though, and swung in a couple of teasing crosses in quick succession that had to be nervously dealt with. An injury to Owen Beck then forced the visitors to make a change, although they took an age to get Ryan Hedges onto the pitch, during which time the hosts were able to deliver two set-pieces. Pompey were slowly starting to take control and they made their pressure count with a goal on 20 minutes. Connor Ogilvie sent the ball up the pitch and MURPHY played a neat one-two with Colby Bishop before sending a right-footed shot into the bottom corner. Blackburn might have hit back immediately, but an angled Hedges drive was kept out by the legs of Nicolas Schmid. And the Blues were soon back on the attack, with Murphy’s long-range strike skidding along the turf and having to be dealt with low down by Aynsley Pears. Things calmed down a bit after that, although an audacious lob from Cauley Woodrow caught Schmid off his line and the keeper back-pedalled furiously to reach the ball. A flurry of bookings slowed down the rhythm of the game and former Fratton loanee Hayden Carter could only nod over at the back post just before the break. Half Time: Pompey 1 Blackburn 0 There was a distinct lack of quality on display once the action restarted, with both sides guilty of some sloppy play. One clearance from Ogilvie was sliced into the path of Yuki Ohashi, but Regan Poole was on hand to make a brave block. Mousinho freshened things up with a switch on the hour mark, as Adil Aouchiche made way for Devlin. The hosts were certainly not showing the attacking threat that had been on display throughout much of the first half. But Rovers were doing very little to capitalise on that, with Schmid still enjoying a relatively quiet afternoon between the sticks. Ritchie’s hard work had certainly earned a rest and he was replaced by Williams on 67 minutes, with Cohen Bramall moving further forward. Pompey started to find a bit more joy at the right end of the pitch and caused Blackburn a few nervy moments at the back. They could not find the second goal that would have calmed everyone down, but saw out the closing stages to collect a precious three points. |
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