Source: Telegraph
Portsmouth midfielder Michael Brown insists players must give their all until the bitter end
Pompey's relegation was all but confirmed after the penalty left them on just 10 points, 17 points adrift from safety with only nine matches left. [LNB]Manager Avram Grant will gauge the thoughts of the squad ahead of Saturday's clash with struggling Hull at Fratton Park, with suggestions he could field an under-strength side in protest. [LNB] Related ArticlesStorrie: the real storyPortsmouth v Hull City: match previewRob Lloyd still hopeful of Pompey dealPortsmouth deducted nine pointsPortsmouth to be hit with nine-point penaltySport on televisionBut Brown sees no reason why the players should not treat the match as business as usual, with an FA Cup semi-final date against Chelsea at Wembley on the horizon. [LNB]"We will try to win the game, for sure. We have to be positive and give it our best shot," he said. "The nine-point deduction has come in now, which had been dragging on and we had sort of been waiting for it. [LNB]"We are all very disappointed with that, but we have to go on now and win as many games as we can. We have to move on. It is about ourselves - we are here to play for Portsmouth. [LNB]"The supporters are going to be paying their money, and we will be trying to beat Hull. [LNB]New Hull manager Iain Dowie wants his side to focus solely on themselves. Dowie has just nine games to ensure Premier League survival and he wants his side to ignore any thoughts about their opponents' fate. [LNB]"I'm not sure how much of an effect the deduction will have, simply because they have known it is coming. I've got great admiration for the job Avram Grant has done there but it is about us," he said. [LNB]
