Portsmouth ended a miserable 2013 with a dull goalless draw against the worst team in the entire Football League.
Jed Wallace came closest to scoring in a dire encounter when he struck the woodwork yet again with a shot that looked like it would float in under the crossbar but struck it instead.
Sonny Bradley also had a rare strike at goal but the ball was deflected wide by one of his own players in Joe Devera. Northampton offered little as the first half drew to a disappointing conclusion.
The second half was even worse than the first as the visitors improved and threatened the Pompey goal on occasion. Johnny Ertl did well to hack the ball off the line following a corner that caused confusion amongst the Pompey defenders and Trevor Carson who seemed to have called for the ball himself.
Romain Padovani came closest to breaking the deadlock during the drab match but could only fire wide having beaten two players with a run towards the box.
The Cobblers had a great chance to win the match when one of their strikers was sent through on goal only to be denied by a late sliding challenge by Bradley. Referee Gavin Ward judged that the Pompey defender took the ball but there would have been a few that would have disagreed with that decision, although the Northampton protests were ignored.
The final whistle blew and boos rang around Fratton Park once again as Pompey failed to score against the team ranked 92nd out of 92 in the Football League and in fairness the visitors deserved a draw from the game, which only speaks volumes for how poor Portsmouth were.
The effort was there but there was no quality up front. Patrick Agyemang was poor and unfortunately those who were supposed to support him couldn't get into the game. The attacking players simply didn't perform and made it easy for the Northampton defence who must have been expecting a tougher game.
On the positive side, it was another clean sheet for Richie Barker's men and the new year will give the manager the chance to bring his own players in. He will need to, as some of the current crop simply aren't up to the standard we should expect of those who pull on the famous royal blue shirt.
This game virtually summed up 2013. A year that might have had some promise but turned out to extremely disappointing. Hopefully 2014 can bring a change in fortunes that Pompey fans so desperately crave.
Pompey Player Ratings
Trevor Carson: 6 - Made a couple of good saves.
Danny East: 7 - Another impressive showing but injury might see him miss some games.
Sonny Bradley: 7 - His best performance for quite a while.
Joe Devera: 6 - Continues to improve.
Marcos Painter: 6 - Solid enough.
Johnny Ertl: 6 - Made a couple of timely interventions.
Therry Racon: 5 - Not as good as he could have been.
Jed Wallace: 6 - Unlucky to hit the woodwork once again.
Romain Padovani: 5 - Barely in the game bar his one effort that sailed wide.
Ricky Holmes: 5 - A rare off day.
Patrick Agyemang: 5 - A weak showing.
Substitutes
John Sullivan
Bondz N'Gala (East 79): N/A - Made no mistakes.
Jack Whatmough
Jack Maloney
Ashley Harris
David Connolly (Ertl 83): N/A - Should have been brought on earlier.
Ryan Bird (Agyemang 75): N/A - No impact.