Jack

Scienza looked out on his feet after an hour as usual, maybe from running the length of the pitch to give it to the skates and celebrate with our lot. Completely justified but it’s weird that he hasn’t got much of an engine. But yeah I feel like we were just finding a bit of rhythm and the 5 mins or so after the goal was the longest spell of keeping the ball on the deck and playing to feet that we had. Subs definitely seemed to disrupt us and we got dragged back into a game of hoofball. Such a shame, that was a great opportunity to beat them down there in the league and we butchered it again. They’re shocking but work hard, hopefully that won’t be enough to keep them up.

Neanderthal

Played right into their hands with 90 mins of header tennis. The rare occasions we got the ball down and played, we created chances. Outfought by a really poor side, barely won a header or 2nd ball, another shit goal conceded. More confusion from Tonda, he’s just got no experience to lean on.

Lost the midfield battle, can’t string passes together. The 2 decent moves we came up with resulted in golden chances for Arma and he fucked them up. Pompey just smashing it into our box and picking up the pieces.

Wouldn’t mind us stopping a few more crosses at source. But they they’re just hoping to put it in the mix and wait for our fuck ups. Need Stewart asap and start playing in their half a bit

Fuck me, this needs to go well for Tonda. Skates away is not the time to experiment. If Matsuki was up to starting games, he’d have done so in recent weeks? Skates have got a makeshift defence, surely Fellows has to be on the right. Huge pressure

Spot on. If Tonda goes back to the turgid back 5 walking football we’ve had to endure all season, after seeing how we can be better than that with the 4 on Wednesday, he’ll rightly get hell from the fans. Because there’s no way we win today playing like that.

Manning’s perfectly weighted through ball to the opposition striker last weekend should certainly be a good reason to leave him out. Far more chance of another 0-0

Yeah I feel like this. If Tonda bottles it and goes with a back 5 the team bus needs to leave him in Fratton

What an experience that was, my first derby game as a 16 year old. The buzz of Beattie scoring right in front of their lot, infront of us in the Northam. The only other bit I really remember was the relief of getting the late penalty to get it over the line. Thought I’d look back at the lineups, no fucking about with 4 subs on the hour mark in those days: Southampton: Niemi, Dodd, Lundekvam, Michael Svensson, Higginbotham, Fernandes, Delap, Telfer, Marsden (Prutton 75), Beattie, Ormerod (Delgado 84). Subs not used: Blayney, Anders Svensson, Pahars. Portsmouth: Srnicek, Zivkovic (Foxe 83), De Zeeuw, Stefanovic, Taylor, Stone, Smertin, Faye (Sherwood 75), Berger, Sheringham, Ayegbini. Subs not used: Wapenaar, Primus, Schemmel.

They’re only good if/when you win. The last three league meetings have been draws but all of them felt like defeats - late equalisers from Pompey in both games in 2011-12, and the really shit 0-0 this season. The police/authorities are doing their best to spoil the occasion for the fans with over policing and Sunday 1200 kickoff time. This one won’t be any fun unless we beat them, and I’m not convinced this squad has got it in them. I’m more nervous than excited for it. I think Tonda will be more concerned with not losing than winning, and that won’t suit us.

What a load of bollocks. They’re fucking insufferable when it comes to football, the bestest in the land, myths about their superiority as supporters, the trophy that they bought while ripping off businesses that supported them. Redknapp. That piss stained nonce with the bell and the hat. Wankers. And I grew up on the SO31/PO14 border, I’ve got quite a few mates who are skates. Just can’t talk to them about football. Most of them supported someone else until they were promoted into the Prem in 2002 or whatever it was, were ‘diehard’ ST holders for a while until they regained their normal status as a struggling football league club, and now they hardly go. There’s nothing not to hate about them.

Sky+

Let’s hope so, because our new keeper is pretty useless with his feet. I’m seeing it as a positive as it means we won’t try to use him as a 6th defender, he needs instructions just to punt it up the pitch if in any doubt. Hopefully less of those long kicks will be straight out for a throw in as we saw last night, and at least he seems more capable using his hands

I’m a Northam ST holder and thought it was completely flat again last night. Like you say, any noise going on was mostly positive, obviously helped by taking an early lead. Had the game gone the other way it would’ve been another Preston/Hull response from the fans I think. If we’d started a back 5 I think it would’ve been negative from the very start. Lots of people voting with their feet, think the manager and SR are still on very very thin ice

Absolutely not. Tonda and SR need replacing ASAP if we ever want to be a stable Premier league club again

Welington has been available to play ahead of Manning for ages, but not picked. Playing a capable CB out of position at RB would have been far more sensible than playing our best winger at RB and three CBs knocking it around between themselves then giving it away.

100% and up against a bloke nearly a foot taller. Commitment, was great to see. Hope Manning was taking notes

Of course he can. He’s had fit full backs for a while now and decided to use Fellows as a wing back instead

Blackmore was piss weak again in the interview. He should’ve had some balls and asked Tonda why it’s taken so long to play his best players in their best positions and ditch the back 5, which is shit.

It’s not just moving the extra man further up the pitch, it’s moving the ball forward from those positions and then scrapping and winning second balls further up the pitch. Something we don’t get the chance to do with an 5 as we give it away so much deeper and with the midfield the wrong side of the ball. And then with your 2 wingers actually playing on the wings, Sheff Utd were forced to double up and leave spaces elsewhere. We looked rusty, a bit edgy, butchered some good chances and conceded some stupid ones. But overall the intent was so much better. It’ll have to be far more like that to have a chance on Sunday

I’ve been saying it all season, that he should be nowhere near the starting XI if we’ve got another option. He’s somehow managed to get even worse the last few weeks and if Tonda puts him in again tonight, he should be gone for that alone. He sums up everything that’s wrong with how this side plays. Slow, predictable passing, no movement, no intensity, no running, switches off every time and then tries to blame everyone else for his fuck ups. I detest him

It’s almost like an experienced, respected manager can get a tune out of a decent but underperforming squad, weed out any troublemakers and start climbing the table. Groundbreaking stuff

Grim isn’t it. Sport Republic have sucked the life out of the club and the enjoyment out of football for me recently

He’s clearly uninterested in playing 4 at the back. His stats tell him we’re perfectly creative with the extra man in defence and our xG will turn into wins any minute now. I’d love to see his stats and analysis that back up his selections defensively, maybe the new guy has been brought in to flower those up