Rival Watch

[URZZZZ]

no one really expected Fulham to beat Pompey.

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

[URZZZZ]

Stoke lose their best CB (and maybe player) to an ACL on international duty. Can't be happy about that

Not an ACL so not really comparable but recall Swift’s injury in his first season here on international duty. Took him over two years to get back to his pre injury form. An inform Swift could have been the difference that season, was abject in the PO final IIRC

[paultheroyal]

no one really expected Fulham to beat Pompey.

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

Absolutely - no idea what Ian is going on about. Fulham win was clear as day particularly as you say, cup final week after and they rested so many players and others didnt want to get injured. Away banker whenever there was one.

[Stranded]

no one really expected Fulham to beat Pompey.

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

Absolutely - no idea what Ian is going on about. Fulham win was clear as day particularly as you say, cup final week after and they rested so many players and others didnt want to get injured. Away banker whenever there was one.

Yeah, I think that is misremembering quite a bit there.

Fulham won their last 3 and whilst we only managed 4 points from the last 18 - Fulham took 12. We should have been home and hosed well before the last day especially as before those last 6 games we had picked up 10 - leaving us 8 points clear of them.

The two key results were our 2-0 home defeat to them and in many ways more importantly the game where they were 2-0 down to Man City with 20 mins to go and won.

The relegation that year was completely avoidable and who knows what the club may have looked like now if it had been but yeah, I think a lot of people were expecting a Fulham win on the last day, and those who didn't did once the line-ups were announced.

[paultheroyal]

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

Absolutely - no idea what Ian is going on about. Fulham win was clear as day particularly as you say, cup final week after and they rested so many players and others didnt want to get injured. Away banker whenever there was one.

Yeah, I think that is misremembering quite a bit there.

Fulham won their last 3 and whilst we only managed 4 points from the last 18 - Fulham took 12. We should have been home and hosed well before the last day especially as before those last 6 games we had picked up 10 - leaving us 8 points clear of them.

The two key results were our 2-0 home defeat to them and in many ways more importantly the game where they were 2-0 down to Man City with 20 mins to go and won.

The relegation that year was completely avoidable and who knows what the club may have looked like now if it had been but yeah, I think a lot of people were expecting a Fulham win on the last day, and those who didn't did once the line-ups were announced.

Yeah agreed - and yes that Man City game was totally the turning point.

[From Despair To Where?]

We lost 2-0 at home to Fulham, 2-0 at home to Bolton and 2-1 away at Sunderland. A draw in any of those 3 would have seen us safe at the other's expense.

[Stranded]

We lost 2-0 at home to Fulham, 2-0 at home to Bolton and 2-1 away at Sunderland. A draw in any of those 3 would have seen us safe at the other's expense.

Indeed but worse still - we lost 2-0 at home and 3-1 at Fulham, with their 2nd goal at ours and their 3rd at Craven Cottage both scored in injury time as we pushed for equalisers.

If we had lost 1-0 and 2-1, we would have stayed up on GD.

[Snowflake Royal]

no one really expected Fulham to beat Pompey.

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

No one really anticipated Pompey throwing the game by putting out their reserves. Fair bit of anger afterwards.

At least that was my recollection. Others may vary. A team winning their final 3 in a row isn’t exactly likely if they're in a relegation fight.

Nevertheless, the overall point remains that from minute 15 to 76 we were safe, and by 76 it was too late to score another 4.

[Zip]

no one really expected Fulham to beat Pompey.

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

No one really anticipated Pompey throwing the game by putting out their reserves. Fair bit of anger afterwards.

At least that was my recollection. Others may vary. A team winning their final 3 in a row isn’t exactly likely if they're in a relegation fight.

Nevertheless, the overall point remains that from minute 15 to 76 we were safe, and by 76 it was too late to score another 4.

In fairness there was a lot of talk about Pompey resting a lot of players for the Cup Final prior to the match. The result was no surprise.

[Sutekh]

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

No one really anticipated Pompey throwing the game by putting out their reserves. Fair bit of anger afterwards.

At least that was my recollection. Others may vary. A team winning their final 3 in a row isn’t exactly likely if they're in a relegation fight.

Nevertheless, the overall point remains that from minute 15 to 76 we were safe, and by 76 it was too late to score another 4.

In fairness there was a lot of talk about Pompey resting a lot of players for the Cup Final prior to the match. The result was no surprise.

Pompey’s team v Fulham was:

Ashdown, Johnson, Distin, Pamarot, Hreidarsson, Utaka, Diarra (Muntari 83), Pedro Mendes (Davis 73), Kranjcar, Defoe, Kanu (Baros 73).
Subs Not Used: Begovic, Wilson.

Their squad that season was:

1 GK David James
3 DF Lucien Aubey
4 DF Lauren
5 DF Glen Johnson
6 MF Lassana Diarra
7 DF Hermann Hreiðarsson
8 MF Papa Bouba Diop
9 FW Milan Baroš
10 FW David Nugent
11 MF Sulley Muntari
14 FW Jermain Defoe
15 DF Sylvain Distin
16 DF Noé Pamarot
17 FW John Utaka
18 MF Arnold Mvuemba
19 MF Niko Kranjčar
20 DF Martin Cranie
21 GK Jamie Ashdown
22 MF Richard Hughes
23 DF Sol Campbell
27 FW Nwankwo Kanu
28 MF Sean Davis
30 MF Pedro Mendes
31 GK Asmir Begović
34 MF Franck Songo'o

Doesn’t particularly strike me of being too much of a weakened side but then I’ve no idea what side was seen as their strongest.

[Mr Optimist]

No one really anticipated Pompey throwing the game by putting out their reserves. Fair bit of anger afterwards.

At least that was my recollection. Others may vary. A team winning their final 3 in a row isn’t exactly likely if they're in a relegation fight.

Nevertheless, the overall point remains that from minute 15 to 76 we were safe, and by 76 it was too late to score another 4.

In fairness there was a lot of talk about Pompey resting a lot of players for the Cup Final prior to the match. The result was no surprise.

Pompey’s team v Fulham was:

Ashdown, Johnson, Distin, Pamarot, Hreidarsson, Utaka, Diarra (Muntari 83), Pedro Mendes (Davis 73), Kranjcar, Defoe, Kanu (Baros 73).
Subs Not Used: Begovic, Wilson.

Their squad that season was:

1 GK David James
3 DF Lucien Aubey
4 DF Lauren
5 DF Glen Johnson
6 MF Lassana Diarra
7 DF Hermann Hreiðarsson
8 MF Papa Bouba Diop
9 FW Milan Baroš
10 FW David Nugent
11 MF Sulley Muntari
14 FW Jermain Defoe
15 DF Sylvain Distin
16 DF Noé Pamarot
17 FW John Utaka
18 MF Arnold Mvuemba
19 MF Niko Kranjčar
20 DF Martin Cranie
21 GK Jamie Ashdown
22 MF Richard Hughes
23 DF Sol Campbell
27 FW Nwankwo Kanu
28 MF Sean Davis
30 MF Pedro Mendes
31 GK Asmir Begović
34 MF Franck Songo'o

Doesn’t particularly strike me of being too much of a weakened side but then I’ve no idea what side was seen as their strongest.

It’s probably not so much the strength of the Pompey side that day, it is more the fact none of them wanted to tackle the skin on a rice pudding in case they got injured or sent off ahead of the cup final.

[From Despair To Where?]

Really?

Don’t remember exactly but Fulham were on a good run of form and Pompey had an FA Cup final the week after. Most of the signs pointed to an away win

No one really anticipated Pompey throwing the game by putting out their reserves. Fair bit of anger afterwards.

At least that was my recollection. Others may vary. A team winning their final 3 in a row isn’t exactly likely if they're in a relegation fight.

Nevertheless, the overall point remains that from minute 15 to 76 we were safe, and by 76 it was too late to score another 4.

In fairness there was a lot of talk about Pompey resting a lot of players for the Cup Final prior to the match. The result was no surprise.

That was definitely my recollection, that Pompey were not going to do us any favours with a cup final coming up.

[leon]

Ok so we’ve established that we hate the Portsmouth pikeys and those middle class wannabe Chelsea twats?

[Mr Angry]

Confirmed that Derby have been given a further 9 point deduction.

[windermereROYAL]

Seems like Barnsley are going down our route and appointing foreign managers that nobody has ever heard of, it worked once but for the best part it goes tits up.

[Stranded]

Seems like Barnsley are going down our route and appointing foreign managers that nobody has ever heard of, it worked once but for the best part it goes tits up.

Been doing it for a while now - to date Stendel and Ismael successes - the rest less so.

[Sutekh]

Seems like Barnsley are going down our route and appointing foreign managers that nobody has ever heard of, it worked once but for the best part it goes tits up.

To flesh out the appointment slightly, Poya Asbaghi is the new Barnsley manager. He is Swedish of Iranian descent (his family fled Iran). He’s only 36 and was previously managing the Swedish u-21s, oddly Wiki has no record of any playing career for him.

[Wycombe Royal]

Seems like Barnsley are going down our route and appointing foreign managers that nobody has ever heard of, it worked once but for the best part it goes tits up.

To flesh out the appointment slightly, Poya Asbaghi is the new Barnsley manager. He is Swedish of Iranian descent (his family fled Iran). He’s only 36 and was previously managing the Swedish u-21s, oddly Wiki has no record of any playing career for him.

Only 36 and managed three clubs as well as the Swedish U21's.....Barnsley is his 4th club and 5th coaching job.

[Mr Angry]

In fairness there was a lot of talk about Pompey resting a lot of players for the Cup Final prior to the match. The result was no surprise.

Pompey’s team v Fulham was:

Ashdown, Johnson, Distin, Pamarot, Hreidarsson, Utaka, Diarra (Muntari 83), Pedro Mendes (Davis 73), Kranjcar, Defoe, Kanu (Baros 73).
Subs Not Used: Begovic, Wilson.

Doesn’t particularly strike me of being too much of a weakened side but then I’ve no idea what side was seen as their strongest.

It’s probably not so much the strength of the Pompey side that day, it is more the fact none of them wanted to tackle the skin on a rice pudding in case they got injured or sent off ahead of the cup final.

This was their Cup Final side:


GK 1 David James
RB 5 Glen Johnson
CB 23 Sol Campbell (c)
CB 15 Sylvain Distin
LB 7 Hermann Hreiðarsson Yellow card 45+1'
DM 6 Lassana Diarra Yellow card 90+3'
RM 17 John Utaka Substituted off 69'
CM 30 Pedro Mendes Substituted off 78'
CM 19 Niko Kranjčar Yellow card 54'
LM 11 Sulley Muntari
CF 27 Nwankwo Kanu Substituted off 87'
Substitutes:
GK 21 Jamie Ashdown
DF 16 Noé Pamarot
MF 8 Papa Bouba Diop Substituted in 78'
FW 9 Milan Baroš Substituted in 87'
FW 10 David Nugent

Both David James and Sol Campbell played despite missing the previous 3 games through injury, whilst Defoe was cup-tied.

So clearly - on paper - NOT a weakened side; however, as has been said, the Pompey players against Fulham were simply not that bothered and didn't want to risk missing a final, and were against a side who knew they needed to win to stay up.......

[Mr Optimist]

Looking at that squad, the wages at Portsmouth must have made even Harry Rednapp’s dog scratch his head and wonder what the fack is going on here.