Source: Daily_Mail
Stoke City 2 Portsmouth 2: That's Hart-stopping drama for Pompey
Paul Hart hugged Brian Kidd in relief as Portsmouth[LNB]'s players celebrated an equalising goal deep into injury time yesterday. The two men, caretaker manager and coach at Fratton Park, understood the significance of the result for both the club and their hopes of landing the jobs on a permanent basis.[LNB]It mattered little that the goal came from Stoke[LNB]central defender Ryan Shawcross, who beat his own goalkeeper, Thomas Sorensen, as he miscued an attempted clearance.[LNB]After turning Portsmouth's declining season around with a much-needed win over Manchester City [LNB]a week earlier, Hart must know that another wholehearted performance will not have harmed his prospects of being appointed the club's third manager of the season.[LNB] Late show: Herman Hreidarsson (left) celebrates with team mate Hayden Mullins after Stoke City's Ryan Shawcross put through his own net[LNB] Stoke v Portsmouth: How the game unfolded[LNB]STOKE NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]PORTSMOUTH NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Man United 2 Blackburn 1[LNB]Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 1[LNB]Arsenal 0 Sunderland 0[LNB]Bolton 2 West Ham 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 0 Wigan 0[LNB]Yesterday, the football grapevine was alive to the possibility of Hart being promoted following the lift in spirits within a squad that had lost confidence under Tony Adams.[LNB]Within a couple of weeks, Hart has the team galvanised in a way that the sacked Adams never achieved. But Portsmouth executive chairman Peter Storrie insisted that the board had not yet arrived at a decision, although he conceded that Hart, with Kidd as his coach, had made a good impression since assuming control from Adams.[LNB]Storrie said: 'The players seem to be enjoying working under Paul and Brian, but you don't rush into a decision like this. The reality is we have made no decision on Paul either way and we will not do so for another couple of weeks. We're fine as we are for now.'[LNB]Hart's analysis of Portsmouth's defiance yesterday was pithy and faultless. 'The Premier League isn't all about the beautiful game,' he said - and this match was never going to be confused with that. 'We had to do some tough work to get a point at a very difficult place.'[LNB]He has a lifetime invested in the game, as a player with Leeds and Nottingham Forest and as a manager with Chesterfield, Forest, Barnsley and Rushden and Diamonds. He was taken to Portsmouth by Harry Redknapp almost two years ago as director of youth operations.[LNB]But suddenly, the developing crisis at Portsmouth - following Redknapp's departure to Tottenham[LNB]in exchange for a £5million cheque in compensation and Adams' sacking - has granted Hart an unexpected opportunity to stake a claim for the vacant post.[LNB] Spot of controversy: Kevin Beattie plants a penalty into the Portsmouth net[LNB]Yesterday, the vagaries of a manager's lot were laid out in front of his eyes at The Britannia Stadium where Stoke, like Portsmouth, needed to acquire points to keep them from falling deeper into trouble. Without warning, a game going nowhere suddenly produced controversy, drama and four goals in the final 15 minutes.[LNB]If fortune favoured Hart with Shawcross's own goal, he had reason to be aggrieved when Stoke were awarded a penalty just two minutes after Niko Kranjcar had given Portsmouth a deserved lead in the 75th minute. [LNB]When Glen Johnson controlled the ball in his own penalty area, it appeared that he had used his shoulder. But referee Michael Jones unhesitatingly pointed to the spot.[LNB]Imagine the increased sense of rage and injustice felt by Portsmouth's travelling supporters when James Beattie, who once played for despised rivals Southampton, scored with a clinically taken penalty.[LNB]Until that moment, Stoke had not posed a meaningful threat against David James's goal. So the sight of Beattie plundering a second goal within two minutes was an especially bitter pill to swallow.[LNB] Peter ouch: Crouch clashes with Abdoulaye Faye[LNB]At least this one was not accompanied by controversy. Beattie was unmarked when he applied the finest of touches with his head from point-blank range to a shot drilled across the area by Danny Pugh. Cue bedlam among Stoke's supporters. [LNB]If Tony Pulis is to preserve his club's status in the Premier League, most of the points will need to be acquired here at The Britannia. Beattie had been brought to Stoke from Sheffield United for £3.5million and goals like these will be valuable if Pulis can keep the club in this company where the revenues from TV contracts run into millions.[LNB]Hart had reason to be heartened by the endeavour Portsmouth showed under the kind of barrage that is not a weekly diet at this level of the game. 'I don't think we were lucky to get a point,' said Hart. 'It wasn't a penalty. Glen Johnson leaned into the ball, but his hand was nowhere near it. But we showed desire and resilience to come back and get a point.'[LNB]Portsmouth did that and it will be noticed in a boardroom where there has been more than enough turbulence for one season. Hart will face stiff opposition for the manager's office. But he did his cause more good than harm yesterday. [LNB] Stoke v Portsmouth: How the game unfolded[LNB]STOKE NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]PORTSMOUTH NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Man United 2 Blackburn 1[LNB]Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 1[LNB]Arsenal 0 Sunderland 0[LNB]Bolton 2 West Ham 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 0 Wigan 0[LNB][LNB] [LNB]
