Newcastle United 0 - Pompey 0
Three little words which have been sweet nothings to the ears of Pompey fans.
Hard to beat.
Utterings which Paul Hart is not bashful to say. Far from it.
He shouts it from the rooftops and broadcasts it to anyone who will listen. Say it loud, say it proud.
That phrase has not only been the backbone of the superb post-Adams form which will keep Pompey in the Premier League.
It has also been the foundation upon every press conference he has ever hosted since stepping into the job back in February.
The simple fact of the matter is the Blues are hard to beat – as eight sides from Hart's 10 matches have discovered.
Even then, Chelsea and Manchester United, the only victors during that period, have also had their frights.
The latest to discover it were Newcastle, a club in crisis faced with a must-win game against one of their relegation rivals last night.
They found, to their cost, that while they may occupy the same bottom seven of the Premier League, in reality the teams are worlds apart.
The soft touches from the nail-biting era of Tony Adams no longer live here anymore.
They have been replaced by one of the most disciplined teams in the top flight.
Hart's methods have had their detractors, nevertheless they are proving time and time again to be the most effective way of clambering free of the relegation zone's gravitational pull.
That's 14 points from 10 games now, four of those resulting in clean sheets and, of course, only two of which have ended in defeats.
Last night they rocked up at St James' Park to be confronted by a truly intimidating atmosphere as the Toon Army attempted to bulldoze their way to victory.
A portly fellow occupied the pitch to passionately conduct the pre-match sing song in an attempt to warm up the vocal cords of some 47,000 home supporters.
He was accompanied by the sight of fans holding up coloured cards found on their seats to create a cascade of black and white across the ground.
Distribution of free scarves and flags also played their part as Shearer's men were given a rousing reception in their quest for three precious points.
Come the game's final 10 minutes, the only chant drifting through the damp north-east air was 'We Are Staying Up'.
Even then that was from Pompey's hardy away following, celebrating the windfall of another point which will now surely keep them in the Premier League.
In between, Newcastle huffed and puffed to at least convince their demanding support of their desire to wear the shirt.
It's just that in front of them was a Pompey team who these days are invariably hard to beat.
And in that respect, all that effort – both on and off the pitch – fell rather flat.
Hart has created a well-drilled, highly-organised side constructed on defensive solidity with the occasional intention to attack.
With the centre of midfield anchored by Sean Davis, Richard Hughes and Hayden Mullins there was no way through.
Behind them, Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin comfortably smothered the three-pronged attack fielded by Shearer in a bold attempt to buy himself some goals.
Then there was David James, always on hand to ruin the grand occasion, in this case denying Michael Owen in the 64th minute for what was Newcastle's best chance of the game.
Confronted by a minimum of 10 players during every foray into the visitors' half, an already poor Newcastle team had absolutely no chance.
Naturally, there was the occasional glimmer, although these were more chinks of lights rather than rays of sunshine in the Toon gloom.
Alan Smith had appeals for a penalty turned down when his fierce drive was thwarted by Hermann Hreidarsson's flying block which ultimately turned out to involve his arm.
Damien Duff saw a 38th-minute shot pushed around the post by James and then, on the stroke of half-time, Obafemi Martins somehow skied the ball over the bar from eight yards following good work by Fabricio Coloccini.
During that opening 45 minutes, Pompey's main threat was provided by Davis, his rising shot following Nadir Belhadj's pass pushed over by Steven Harper.
A minute after the break, Owen's back-heel put through Mark Viduka, who took one touch before firing straight at the keeper.
At the other end, Crouch went down under a challenge from Coloccini but Mike Riley was not interested in awarding a penalty.
Then came that golden Owen chance, Hreidarsson playing the former England man onside only for the striker's shot to be blocked by the advancing James.
There was still time for Richard Hughes' looping header from substitute Jermaine Pennant's corner to strike the upright in the 82nd minute.
Now that really would have ruined the Alan Shearer party.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Sunday 12 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 3 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North west
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Cloudy
Temperature: 3 C to 7 C
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