Indeed the home side had the most of the possession and chances in the first half an hour, although without really troubling the visiting keeper. Both sides were restricted to the odd long-shot until James Keene had a deflected effort cleared off the line after bobbling through the Charlton defence, whilst Ricardo Fuller should've done much better when presented with a great chance from six yards out. Unfortunately he could only thrash the ball over the bar and into the Milton End, with just the keeper to beat.
Charlton could've taken the lead themselves when the ball was cut in from the left channel, although somehow it ran across the face of goal without either striker - Euell or Lisbie, both players who have scored at the highest level - getting a firm connection on it. But this just spurred Pompey on and, following decent link-up play from Horsted and Cooper, the ball was whipped in for James Keene to head into the back of the net. Despite the presence of the more experienced Fuller and Kamara, Keene seemed to be the only real threat we had all night - Fuller overdid it at times and failed to make an impression, whilst Kamara looked like he really couldn't be bothered. But then again considering the fact he scored a hat trick in his last reserve outing and still struggles to get in first eleven despite our galscoring problems, is it any surprise he doesn't seem to care?
Pompey held the lead until the second half, when Angus was punished for tussling with John inside the area. It was a bit of "six of one, half a dozen of the other", but perhaps it could be argued that the referee was looking to make amends for a seemingly more obvious penalty he chose not to give in the first half. Euell had to retake his spot kick after enroachment on the original effort, but both reached the same conclusion to make the scores level.
Around this time I found myself forced to move - as much as I love to see youngsters coming along to the matches, seventy minutes of "Why is that man kicking it", "are we winning yet", "where is Beckham" and the high pitched squeals of "COME ON POMPEY" are enough to drive someone as calm and collected (he lied) as me to the edge. Unfortunately I only found myself sitting near to God's self-appointed king of comedy who felt the need to shout "witty" remarks at every available opportunity; amidst this backdrop of personal disappointment Charlton grabbed their second and - ultimately - the winner. Euell again, this time with an effort after a decent flowing move from the visitors. Guatelli seemed to let the ball slip under his body but he didn't stand much chance with a few defenders blocking his view.
And that was pretty much that. Hughes, who had had a decent game in the centre of the park, was taken off. Kamara was also replaced by Fordyce after a disappointing day at the office when you would barely have noticed he was on the pitch. As I always say with these reserve matches it's not the result that counts, more the performance - and in truth it was a decent go from our lads. In the second half they kicked up a gear and had that extra bit of quality but we played well for a young team and it's good to see Keene back amongst the goals. Hope for the future, at least.