POMPEY THWARTED BY THE COD ARMY
Jackett bemoans defensive gaps
PORTSMOUTH boss Kenny Jackett was left lamenting his side’s defensive deficiencies after they shared the spoils with promotion rivals Fleetwood Town at Fratton Park.
Victory would have taken Portsmouth joint second in the congested third tier promotion battle, but a point still lifted them from sixth to fourth, while Fleetwood climbed from seventh to fifth.
Barrie McKay gave Fleetwood the lead on 19 minutes. He was initially denied by Pompey keeper Alex Bass but was able to tuck home the rebound from close range.
Portsmouth levelled things up before the break. Defender Sean Raggett sent a looping header over Cod Amy keeper Alex Cairns in the 36th minute from Ross McCrorie’s cross.
There were two goals in the opening ten minutes of the second half – and they were both scored by Fleetwood’s towering defender Harry Souttar. The Australian international, on loan from Stoke, turned Ryan Williams’ pullback into the roof of his own net on 48 minutes, but quickly made amends by heading home seven minutes later after Ched Evans had nodded the ball across goal.
Pompey boss Jackett said: “I don’t think we were really sound enough defensively and left ourselves too open in certain situations.
Difficult
“Our full-backs were out to win and looking to run down the line before we even had the ball. If you don’t get your pass right or there’s a turnover, that makes it difficult.
“Everyone was hoping to win and we have to take a point, so it’s slightly frustrating from that point of view.”
Sunderland’s promotion hopes took a hit as they crashed to a 2-0 defeat at Bristol Rovers.
Jonson Clarke-Harris proved the thorn in the Black Cats’ side, scoring both for the mid-table hosts. He turned and fired home the opener in the 39th minute and then clinched victory by scoring from the spot with 15 minutes left after Max Power had been penalised for handling Luke Leahy’s cross.
The loss, combined with the draw between Portsmouth and Fleetwood, saw Sunderland drop back to seventh place.
Tranmere gave their survival chances another shot in the arm with a precious 2-1 victory at Blackpool.
Precious
It was Neil Critchley’s first home game in charge of Blackpool, but the visitors spoiled it by notching their third win on the spin.
Rovers struck twice late in the closing stages of the first half to take control. Morgan Ferrier headed the opener on 37 minutes and the experienced James Vaughan tucked home the second in stoppage time.
The Seasiders had renewed hope when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall thumped in a 25-yarder just before the hour mark, but Micky Mellon’s men held on for a victory that lifted them to within three points of fourth-bottom AFC Wimbledon with a game in hand.
Bottom-of-the-table Bolton picked up a point with a 2-2 draw at Burton. Ex-Brewer Ryan Delaney headed home on 20 minutes to give Bolton the lead, but the hosts drew level when Rangers loanee Jamie Murphy scored from close range eight minutes later.
Ethan Hamilton slotted in to restore the Trotters’ lead on 38 minutes. However, Burton rescued a point when Murphy steered home his second on 65 minutes.
● IN THE only League Two game in midweek, Carlisle jumped a couple of places to 18th with a solid 2-0 home victory against Newport.
Omari Patrick headed the Cumbrians into a fifth-minute lead and Josh Kayode gave them breathing space when he scored from the spot on 33 minutes after Dale Gorman had brought down Jack Bridge.
The Exiles’ hopes were further hit when defender Ryan Inniss was sent off for a rash challenge on Kayode a minute before the break.