Rescuing Portsmouth: The Richie Barker Regime

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8. October 2013
Portsmouth vs. Oldham Athletic
Fratton Park
Portsmouth 1-0 Oldham Athletic

8' David Connolly (Andy Barcham) - POR



Round 2 of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy provided an excellent match with Oldham Athletic traveling to Fratton Park. This evening's game provided a patent early goal by Portsmouth in the 8th minute. A couple days after being named to the Sky Bet League 2 Team of the Week, Andy Barcham proved why. His perfect cross found the head of David Connolly for his fifth goal of the season. Connolly's looping header over the keeper and into the far side netting would be enough as the clock wore closer to 90. There were many chances for Portsmouth to grab an insurance goal, but they just couldn't find the target. One is all you need when you play as solid as Pompey do defensively, and tonight proved that with a 1-0 win and advancement into the Area Quarterfinal of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy at home against Wycombe, 2-1 winners on the road against Morecambe.

Up Next: League Match @ AFC Wimbledon (0-5-6 5pts, 24th)

8.10.2013

AFC Wimbledon 0-0 Cheltenham Town (3-4 pens)
Brentford 4-1 York City
Bristol City 4-0 Bristol Rovers
Bury 0-1 S****horpe United
Chesterfield 0-2 Sheffield United
Colchester 1-0 Preston
Coventry City 1-2 Wolverhampton
Crawley Town 1-0 Tranmere Rovers
Hartlepool 1-2 Gillingham
Leyton Orient 2-2 Torquay United (5-4 pens)
Morecambe 1-2 Wycombe
Peterborough 3-1 Walsall
Portsmouth 1-0 Oldham Athletic
Rotherham United 1-2 Shrewsbury
Southend United 2-0 Oxford United
Stevenage 2-1 Plymouth Argyle

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19. October 2013
AFC Wimbledon vs. Portsmouth
The Cherry Red Records Stadium

AFC Wimbledon 1-4 Portsmouth

20' Ricky Holmes (Andy Barcham) - POR
58' David Connolly (Romain Padovani) - POR
69' Andy Barcham (Jed Wallace) - POR
87' Barry Fuller (Jack Midson) - WIM
90+2' Johannes Ertl (Jed Wallace) - POR



Tonight in Wimbledon we had a match between first and last, yet it looked much closer than that in the first half. With Wimbledon controlling play early on, it was Portsmouth's first quality chance by Ricky Holmes that broke the scoreless game. In the 20th minute Holmes took claim to a loose ball just outside the box and took on three defenders. Just as a fourth defender came in he drilled a shot across his body, low, off the post and in. It would stay 1-0 going into the half with Wimbledon outplaying Portsmouth for the majority of the half. With a couple minutes before the half, though, there was a series of very unfortunate events for Portsmouth as Holmes and defender Sonny Bradley went down with apparent knee injuries. Initial thoughts were not good for either of them, but we will hear shortly from the medical staff out of Portsmouth as to the seriousness of both injuries. The half must have settled the frustration of both Wimbledon's attacking style and losing two starters to injury since Portsmouth came out firing. In the 58th minute midfielder Romain Padovani slipped a fantastic ball into the path of David Connolly who then rolled the ball under the keeper for a 2-0 lead. The man in form, Andy Barcham, would then find the net himself in the 69th minute after a terrible back pass to the keeper was intercepted and crossed in by Jed Wallace for an easy header by Barcham and a 3-0 lead. In the closing minutes of the game Pompey keeper Trevor Carson, who has been stellar, made an uncharacteristic mistake in misplaying a crossed ball that found the back of the net in the 87th minute from Barry Fuller. Determined to make up for the goalkeeping blunder, Wallace would again find a teammate from a perfectly played cross as this time it would be Johannes Ertl with the headed goal in the 92nd minute to cap off an interesting night in Wimbledon. More to come regarding the two possibly serious injuries.

Up Next: League Match vs. Northampton (7-3-2 24pts, 2nd)



19.10.2013

AFC Wimbledon 1-4 Portsmouth
Bristol Rovers 2-1 Cheltenham Town
Bury 2-1 Rochdale
Fleetwood Town 2-1 Accrington
Hartlepool 1-1 Dagenham
Mansfield Town 0-1 Plymouth Argyle
Newport County 2-1 Burton Albion
Northampton 1-2 York City
Oxford United 2-2 Chesterfield
Southend United 1-0 Morecambe
Torquay United 2-1 S****horpe United
Wycombe 1-1 Exeter City

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Senior Physiotherapist Report


Ricky Holmes
"Ricky Holmes has suffered a Hyper Extended Knee and will be out for about 3 weeks."
Replacement: Andy Barcham to CAM, Jed Wallace to RM


Sonny Bradley
"Sonny Bradley has suffered a Sprained Knee and will be out for about 3 weeks."
Replacement: Joe Devara to LCB


Matches they will miss:
22.10.2013 vs. Northampton (2nd)
26.10.2013 @ Rochdale (14th)
2.11.2013 vs. Wycombe (22nd)
5.11.2013 @ Plymouth Argyle (7th)

After this string of matches, the first possible game back for both could be in the First Round F.A. Cup match vs. Northampton or at the latest the Area Quarter Final of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy match vs. Wycombe. Manager Richie Barker is hoping for a speedy recovery but knows what the most important thing is for his club, "We need to get them healthy. Winning the league is the top priority and if that means they miss both cup matches for the betterment of the long run, then so be it. We will miss them, but it is an always will be a 'next man up' mentality for us if we want to accomplish our goals. Stumbles will occur along the way, but we mustn't allow it to put us in a new direction."

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22. October 2013
Portsmouth vs. Exeter City
Fratton Park
Portsmouth 2-0 Northampton

17' Andy Barcham - POR
90' Danny East (George Branford) - POR



The versatility of manager Richie Barker's side will be tested in the next three weeks with the injuries to Ricky Holmes and Sonny Bradley. The first, and arguably the most difficult challenge, came at home against Northampton this evening. With Jed Wallace and Joe Devara being inserted into the starting lineup, Barker reached deep into his reserves and pulled up Danny East, and George Branford. For East, this was not his first stint with the first squad, however it was a welcomed first for Branford. With all the changes to the squad, it was the consistent Andy Barcham who grabbed the lead for Portsmouth in the 17th minute after he stripped the ball away from the Northampton defenders and curled a shot to the lower corner of the goal. Even with the lead, Portsmouth looked uncomfortable throughout and almost squandered the lead on a couple close calls, but Trevor Carson was able to keep the clean sheet all night. Finally, in the 90th minute it was the two newcomers that would link together for the insurance goal. Branford collected possession and played a ball across the box to East, who took on two defenders and while falling away, shot the ball low and across his body. The shot took the Northampton keeper by surprise and rolled itself to the far corner of the goal for the versatile defender turned midfielder's first goal of the season.

Next Up: League Match @ Rochdale (4-4-5 16pts, 12th)


22.10.2013

Accrington 0-1 Southend United
Burton Albion 3-1 Oxford United
Cheltenham Town 1-1 Hartlepool
Chesterfield 4-0 Mansfield Town
Dagenham 2-0 Torquay United
Exeter City 2-1 Fleetwood Town
Morecambe 1-2 Bristol Rovers
Plymouth Argyle 2-0 Bury
Portsmouth 2-0 Northampton
Rochdale 0-0 AFC Wimbledon
S****horpe United 4-1 Newport County
York City 1-2 Wycombe

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26. October 2013
Rochdale vs. Portsmouth
Spotland Stadium

Rochdale 2-2 Portsmouth

22' Jaime Allen (Peter Vincenti) - ROC
61' Therry Racon (Shaun Cooper) - POR
69' David Connolly (pen) - POR
88' Gary Dicker - ROC



If you wanted a game with pace and chances, this afternoon was it. Rochdale's Jaime Allen struck first in the 22nd minute as he worked a give and go with Peter Vincenti and finished a strong goal as he held off two defenders to get to the ball. The 1-0 Rochdale lead would last through halftime, but in the 61st minute Therry Racon thumped home a 22 yard blast into the top left corner of the goal after he received a pass from Shaun Cooper. Cooper would eventually go off with what looked like a serious elbow injury after landing awkwardly on one of Portsmouth's many corners. Just minutes later, a corner kick played in towards Joe Devara looked like it would end up in a goal, but Rochdale's Lancashire had different ideas and he took down Devara as he attempted his header, leading to a penalty. Captain David Connolly stepped up and place the ball into the top left corner as the keeper guessed the other way, giving Portsmouth a 2-1 lead. The lead looked to be enough, but with time running out, Rochdale's Gary Dicker would connect on a bouncing ball just inside the penalty mark and slammed the ball into the roof of the net. There was nothing Trevor Carson could do in goal after he saved the initial attempt. With nothing much left on the clock, each team would see the game out to ensure gaining a point apiece.

Up Next: League Match vs. Wycombe (3-4-7 13pts, 21st)


26.10.2013

AFC Wimbledon 1-2 Plymouth Argyle
Bristol Rovers 2-1 Accrington
Bury 1-0 Chesterfield
Fleetwood Town 1-1 York City
Hartlepool 1-2 Morecambe
Mansfield Town 2-2 Burton Albion
Newport County 1-2 Dagenham
Oxford United 0-2 S****horpe United
Rochdale 2-2 Portsmouth
Southend United 2-1 Exeter City
Torquay United 1-3 Cheltenham Town
Wycombe 0-2 Northampton

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Senior Physiotherapist Report



The Good
Both Ricky Holmes and Sonny Bradley have been medically cleared to return from injury. They will rejoin the first team squad's training sessions, but it will be up to manager Richie Barker as to when he lets them see limited time in matches.


The Bad
Shaun Cooper, who appeared to hurt his elbow in the 2-2 draw with Rochdale, has only bruised it. With that said he will be out for a minimum of 5 days to let it heal fully. Cooper has been in fantastic form recently, even finding himself on the scoring sheet last game by picking up an assist on the first goal. Look for him to miss just the game against Wycombe and be ready for the 5.11.2013 match against Plymouth Argyle.



The Ugly
Jed Wallace, essentially the replacement for Ricky Holmes, has gone down with a serious injury during the most recent training session. Wallace suffered a Broken Tibia and with the initial assessment it appears he will be lost for about 5 months. With Wallace's super-sub spot on the team this will weaken Barker's bench significantly. Wallace's has appeared in 12 matches with 1 goal and 3 assists to his name.

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Portsmouth Win Streak Among Best Ever

Opening the record books after their 11th win in a row and finally stopping at 12, Portsmouth have found themselves one shy of tying the all-time mark set by 1904-05 Manchester United, 1905-06 Bristol City, and a little more recently 1950-51 Preston North End. All three teams hit 13 consecutive victories in Division 2.

Portsmouth does find themselves in fine company with the teams that also accumulated 12 straight wins during a season with 1891-92 Sunderland (Division 1), 1891-92 Preston North End (Division 1), 1892-93 Birmingham (Division 2), 1959-60 Tottenham (Division 1), 1985-86 Reading (Division 3), and 1991-92 Newcastle United (Division 2).

Not only do the 12 consecutive victories put Portsmouth in the record books, but more importantly it sets them up for possible promotion to League 1.

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2. November 2013
Portsmouth vs. Wycombe
Fratton Park
Portsmouth 1-0 Wycombe

35' David Connolly (Johannes Ertl) - POR



Portsmouth were almost given more than they could handle against an inferior Wycombe squad. With three starters out of the lineup, manager Richie Barker still believed they should have faired better, "We were sluggish and the runs off the ball just weren't there. Maybe it is the unfamiliarity around the pitch, maybe Wycombe played a great game defensively. Either way, we should play better. In the end, three points is three points." Barker's squad slipped passed Wycombe 1-0 thanks to a 35th minute wonder-strike from team captain David Connolly. Johannes Ertl grabbed the ball in Pompey's end then played it up to Captain Connolly who slammed home a 30 yard blast into the top right corner of the goal. The stadium erupted with the thunderous strike that seemingly came out of nowhere. Another three points for Portsmouth as they continue their streak of gathering points in each of their first 15 matches.

Up Next: League Match @ Plymouth Argyle (8-3-4 27pts, 7th)


2.11.2013

Accrington 1-2 Hartlepool
Burton Albion 1-1 Bury
Cheltenham Town 4-1 Newport County
Chesterfield 4-0 AFC Wimbledon
Dagenham 0-1 Oxford United
Exeter City 2-1 Bristol Rovers
Morecambe 1-3 Torquay United
Northampton 3-2 Fleetwood Town
Plymouth Argyle 1-1 Rochdale
Portsmouth 1-0 Wycombe
S****horpe United 4-1 Mansfield Town
York City 1-2 Southend United