Bournemouth 1 Pompey 4
It took 26 minutes to write Lomana Lualua's name into Pompey folklore.
At Bournemouth, it took him 16 minutes to pen what could be his final Blues chapter.
The DR Congo striker has long courted controversy in his Fratton Park tenure.
Now it appears other sides are courting him.
Espanyol and Sevilla are rumoured to be among a clutch of Spanish sides on to his scent – and in those 16 minutes the 26-year-old showed why as he fired Pompey to a 4-1 triumph at the Fitness First Stadium.
The man so often written off turning into the hat-trick hero may have raised many an eyebrow, yet this was the enigmatic front man at his most sublime.
His first goal was a driven right-foot shot from the right, the second a cool finish past an onrushing keeper and the third a brilliant curling effort from outside the area.
Quality in abundance.
For once Lualua's football triumphed over his demons.
The skill, the tricks, the outrageous confidence, they were all there.
Only this time he had goals to accompany them on the pitch – and the result was him at his very, very best.
It would be naive to dismiss his strikes on the basis the opposition were nothing more than a League One outfit in a meaningless friendly, and a side struggling for numbers at that.
Yet his fellow forwards – including the new 14m partnership of David Nugent and John Utaka, paired in this country for the first time – failed to match the feat.
As for the Blues followers, there was little interest in pouring scorn over the much-maligned striker's renaissance. Instead the name Lualua was sung with a gusto and passion not heard down Pompey parts for the best part of 18 months.
Not a bad reaction to a victory in a friendly.
The song had been boxed and put into storage for a long time. Too long.
From missing the Great Escape finale with a niggling injury, to the writing-off of his desperate last season, it's been two years to forget for the ex-Newcastle man.
It's been two years and three months since his finest Blues moment when he bagged two in the demolition derby against Saints at Fratton Park.
Paul Telfer was part of the visiting team humbled on that day.
And the instigator was at his brilliant best in the pair's latest meeting in Bournemouth.
Yet while the explosive second half heralded the Lualua comeback, the first 45 minutes highlighted plenty of other striking concerns.
Nugent once again struggled, looking sluggish and blunt as he toiled to net that morale-boosting maiden goal.
The left hand of last man Ryan Garry thwarted perhaps his best opportunity when the former Arsenal defender scooped the ball behind him as Nugent chased – a law break missed by referee Paul Melin.
It means his drought has now lasted five games.
Strike partner Utaka faired a little better, his dribbling and turn of pace repeatedly cutting a way through the Bournemouth midfield.
And his willingness to track back earned generous applause from the visiting fans when he popped up in the right-back slot to help out Lauren in the 24th minute.
A drab first-half was soon forgotten as Pompey made a clutch of changes after the break.
With David James, Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin all rested, Redknapp was giving plenty of others a chance – and it transformed the match.
With Benjani Mwaruwari up front partnering fellow substitute Lualua, suddenly there was plenty of pace, trickery and power, while Arnold Mvuemba provided some sublime touches in the centre of the park.
Within four minutes Pompey had taken the lead through Niko Kranjcar's low right-foot shot which squirmed out of Neil Moss' reach.
Then came the Lualua show.
Josh Gowling had already done well to hack Benjani's right-wing cross clear from the toe of the DR Congo man. But he finally grabbed his first on 65 minutes when he drove an effort in from the right.
On 76 minutes chants of 'Lualua' greeted his second, and his quick-fire hat-trick was completed when he placed the ball from distance inside the far post.
There was still time for triallist Christophe to clout Brett Pitman with a badly- misjudged overhead kick which made contact with the striker's head rather than the ball.
The Bournemouth man picked himself up from the spot to grab the consolation past substitute keeper Asmir Begovic – but it mattered not.
Lomana Lualua's back – it only remains to be seen whether his back is then turned on Pompey.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
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Temperature: 15 C to 24 C
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