A fairly strong Pompey team dominated possession up to the point where David Nugent scored after being put through on goal and taking the ball past a couple of Hawks defenders.
In a low-key affair where only 2,206 watched, the only other good chance of note during the first half was when Tommy Smith's header was cleared off the line by Hopkinson.
It looked like Pompey would go in at the break a goal to the good as the hosts had created barely anything, but they levelled thanks to a header from Turkish striker Mustafa Tiryaki just before half-time.
The Blue Square Conference South side should then have taken the lead after a clumsy challenge by Marlon Pack on Stewart Douglas handed them a penalty.
However, Liam O'Brien, on for Pompey's other young goalkeeper Jon Stewart, saved Sam Pearce's penalty and it wasn't too long after that when Michael Brown slotted in from a difficult angle to give the visitors the lead once again.
The game soon descended into a patchy affair thanks to numerous substititutions by both managers. The game petered out and Pompey ended up winning the game fairly comfortably considering it was their first pre-season fixture.
The result of this game may have mattered more than you might think given the negativity of some our fans. A poor result against a non-league side, even in pre-season, would have given the doom mongers even more to moan about along with the ongoing issues off the pitch.
My very early impressions of Steve Cotterill is that he's a very "hands on" manager who likes to be vocal. He shouted at Tommy Smith early in the game when he went to take a corner, telling him to get in the box instead and when the game stopped for a drink break, he had the players in a group to discuss tactics.
He seems like a far cry from some of our past managers who aren't vocal or didn't even turn up at Westleigh Park for previous friendlies, but I'm sure we'll learn more about him when he actually has the opportunity to rebuild the team.
Pompey's next friendly takes place in the USA where they will play Club America on Wednesday.