Pompey's run of goalless draws ended but not in the way Richie Barker would have wanted after his side were beaten 3-1 by Fleetwood Town.
Ben Chorley was missing from the defence and it showed as the Portsmouth back four struggled to contain "big Jon Parkin" and his strike partner Jamille Matt, with Fleetwood's attacking midfielders also getting in on the act with a couple of shots from distance.
It only took just over a quarter of an hour for Pompey to concede as a cross into the box wasn't cleared and Trevor Carson produced a brilliant reflex save to deny Matt from close range but the rebound fell straight to Parkin who tapped in the opener.
Things got even worse soon after as referee Iain Williamson awarded the Cod Army an extremely dubious penalty. Daniel Alfei had nudged Josh Morris in the box with a cross coming in which was never going to reach him, yet the Fleetwood player went down and the spot kick was given.
Antoni Sarcevic stepped up and gave Carson no chance of saving the penalty, as the cringeworth Captain Pugwash theme played around Highbury Stadium for a second time, complete with Cod mascot doing the Saturday Night Fever dance on the big screen.
Pompey never got going until the final five minutes of the half when their passes actually found players in a blue shirt and the best piece of play saw Jake Jervis's shot blocked before the half-time whistle.
The visitors' defensive frailties were exposed early in the second half once again as a ball into the box was once again not cleared properly and allowed Matt to scramble the ball in and effectively kill the game.
The travelling Pompey fans were beginning to vent their frustrations with pockets of supporters chanting "we want Barker out" and others arguing amongst each other as Jed Wallace came on for Wes Fogden.
Jed made an immediate impact as he ran down the centre of the pitch and blasted the ball into the top corner from distance to give the Pompey fans something to cheer about.
It may have taken an excellent strike, but Pompey actually started to play some good football and put the Fleetwood defence under some pressure with substitute Patrick Agyemang linking the attack well, especially during one surge forward when he produced a lovely backheel for Toumani Diagarouga who unfortunately ran the ball out of play.
That summed up the rest of Pompey's afternoon with promising attacks being stopped by a lack of quality at the crucial moment, although Joe Devera's powerful header was tipped over the bar by Chris Maxwell.
Fleetwood had their chances on the break as a good game of football broke out at Highbury in the last half hour but for Richie Barker it was too little, too late in truth and the final whistle confirmed another defeat for his team.
The result definitely highlighted the lack of leadership at the back due to Chorley's absence and the manner in which the first and third goals were conceded. If he is out for a significant amount of time then our team are not going to keep many clean sheets between now and the end of the season because of silly mistakes that are a reminder of how this team defended under Guy Whittingham's management.
If that is the case, then perhaps Barker should consider changing the formation to 3-4-3 permanently? Pompey played some good football which was actually entertaining to watch when Alfei and Holmes played as wing backs with Devera, N'Gala and Whatmough in the centre.
Speaking of Whatmough, he was the one main positive to come out of yesterday's performance in terms of the whole 90 minutes. When he played in midfield he was actually able to pass the ball to a blue shirt and when he moved into the centre of defence he looked accomplished. Maybe he'll get a run in the side now?
The performance was still awful for an hour, however, and the result really does leave the club in a perilous position. We will know where we stand after Tuesday night with all the sides below us playing their game in hand but York visit Fratton Park next and they are the form team in the division.
On a final note, the fracture within our fan base has become greater as evident by the arguing between some of John Westwood's mob and others who aren't particularly his biggest fans, to say the least.
It must be said that Westwood doesn't particularly help the situation when he's drunkenly singing "internet freaks, go hang yourselves" amongst other such charming pearls of wisdom. He could do more to unite the fans as, for some stupid reason, there are a fair few of the younger generation that look up to him.
However, as proved by Wallace's goal yesterday, the only thing that will stop fans dissenting are performances on the pitch. As soon as Pompey pulled one back, the in-fighting and complaining stopped and the fans all backed the team as one.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got myself a noose to tie...
Pompey Player Ratings
Trevor Carson: 6 - Had no chance with the goals.
Daniel Alfei: 5 - Poor at the back but looked good going forward in the last half hour.
Joe Devera: 5 - Constant hoofing did not work.
Bondz N'Gala: 5 - Lacked any real organisation.
Nicky Shorey: 5 - Off the pace.
Wes Fogden: 5 - Wasted one good chance in otherwise poor performance.
Jack Whatmough: 7 - The one shining light of the afternoon.
Toumani Diagouraga: 6 - Full of energy as always but things didn't happen for him.
Ricky Holmes: 5 - Needs to work on his crossing.
Jake Jervis: 5 - Never much of a threat with a skewed shot late on summing up his performance.
Michael Drennan: 6 - Buzzed around but never looked like causing much trouble.
Substitutes
Phil Smith
Sonny Bradley
Marcos Painter
Thery Racon
Jed Wallace (Fogden 58): 7 - Brilliant goal.
Patrick Agyemang (Shorey 64): 7 - Looks like he's back to his best as Fleetwood defence struggled to contain him.
Ryan Taylor (Drennan 78): N/A - Not really involved.