Pompey take on second-placed Shrewsbury Town tomorrow in a bid to get back into the top half of League Two.
Team News
Jack Whatmough is set for six months on the sidelines after it was confirmed that he suffered cruciate ligament damage during the 2-2 draw with Cheltenham. Josh Passley is fit again and has extended his loan until the end of the season, whilst Paul McCallum could feature after scoring a hat-trick for the reserves during the week.
Liam Lawrence will return to Fratton Park with new club Shrewsbury but Derby loanee Rhys Sharpe is banned after being sent off against Oxford last weekend.
The Match
Andy Awford has said that the pressure is still on his team despite the play-offs now being virtually unreachable and he would be right as a crowd of 15,000 people will not want to see Pompey going through the motions.
There is also added pressure on the manager as he knows a poor finish to the season will see his future questioned and so his players should be fired up for a tough match tomorrow.
It'll be interesting to see how the new(ish) signings of Nyron Nosworthy and Cole Kpekewa perform on their home debuts as neither were anything to write home about at Kingsmeadow last weekend. Ben Chorley could well be axed for Adam Webster after his own goal in that match, too.
Wes Fogden is a player that Pompey fans would like to see start a match now he is almost fully fit and with goals from midfield hard to come by with Jed Wallace also struggling for form a little in the last few games.
The Shrews will be tough opposition as they've won four of their last six matches on their travels although they are missing two good players in James Wesolowski and Nathaniel Knight-Percival so Pompey may fancy their chances. Having said that, nobody would be surprised to see Liam Lawrence find the back of the net tomorrow, would they?
What Pompey fans will really want to see is a performance that shows that this season will have a competitive end and they can ask "what if?" questions come the end of the season rather than scream "Awford out!" all through the summer.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Pompey
GK: Paul JONES
RWB: Josh PASSLEY
CB: Joe DEVERA
CB: Ben CHORLEY
CB: Nyron NOSWORTHY
LWB: Cole KPEKAWA
CM: James DUNNE
CM: Wes FOGDEN
CM: Jed WALLACE
CF: Ryan TAYLOR
CF: Matt TUBBS
Shrewsbury
GK: Jayson LEUTWILER
RWB: Cameron GAYLE
CB: Jermaine GRANDISON
CB: Mark ELLIS
CB: Connor GOLDSON
LWB: Mickey DEMETRIOU
CM: Ryan WOODS
CM: Bobby GRANT
CM: Liam LAWRENCE
CF: James COLLINS
CF: Jean-Louis AKPA AKPRO
Last Time: Portsmouth 3 Shrewsbury Town 1 (League One - 20/10/2012)
After a goalless first half, Wes Thomas gave Pompey the lead and Izale McLeod doubled it by chipping keeper Chris Weale. Marvin Morgan pulled one back for the Shrews but was later sent off for dissent and McLeod scored again in stoppage time to ensure the three points stayed at Fratton Park.
My Prediction
Pompey are so inconsistent now it's difficult to predict any of their matches despite the opposition. Time to sit on the fence again...
Portsmouth 1 Shrewsbury Town 1