Pompey 2 - Manchester City 0
Easy job, this Premier League management lark. Tony Adams had spent the final 77 days of his Pompey reign scrambling around for that league-winning formula.
It had been even longer since his side had managed to emerge with a clean sheet.
Then Paul Hart shows up with his magic wand to reap instant success on both fronts.
Now that really must hurt the unfortunate Adams, no doubt still licking his wounds following last week's dismissal.
To rub even more salt into the gaping wound, it was achieved by the Blues' caretaker boss on the back of just a day's training with his entire squad.
Incidentally, it was also Hart's first-ever match in the Premier League.
Not bad for someone whose last managerial position saw him sacked as Rushden & Diamonds boss on the back of 4-1 defeat to Northwich Victoria after an eight-match winless run.
But suddenly Pompey's youth guru is the toast of Fratton Park, an unlikely saviour if ever there was one.
A debut 2-0 triumph over Manchester City and everything's looking up.
The threat of relegation has receded slightly, the clean sheets are back and the smiles have returned.
Perhaps Hart should call it quits now and return to masterminding the Academy's impressive progress.
At least then he would ensure himself a record as the manager with the greatest win ratio in Pompey's history.
That decision may yet be taken out of his hands this week as the continued pursuit of Adams' long-term replacement invariably gathers pace.
But you can't help feeling this isn't the last we've seen of Hart, neither should it be following Saturday's heroics.
And with a crucial trip to Stoke next on the horizon, few would begrudge his possible retention of the hot seat.
It would be an insult to a 55-year-old man with previous managerial experience at Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Chesterfield and, of course, Rushden, to label Saturday's glorious outcome as beginner's luck.
For a start, the Blues fully warranted their victory over Manchester City's expensively-assembled side, no question about that.
Secondly, the wily know-how of Hart during the week's build-up had laid the foundations, not least the canny appointment of the highly-respected Brian Kidd as coach.
His first act as caretaker was to bring his friend and former Manchester United number two to the south coast, initially on a temporary basis.
Meanwhile, in an effort to engender team spirit and a feeling of genuine togetherness, Hart also booked his side into the Botley Grange the night before the match.
Even a sports quiz was arranged as the players enjoyed each others' company to the maximum without the traditional requirements of alcohol and loud music.
To complete the unified presence, the team as one travelled to Fratton Park on a coach for the big game they could ill-afford to lose.
And from the display they subsequently conjured up on the pitch, Hart's rather original approach proved to be nothing short of a masterstroke.
Employing a mirror image of the Manchester City formation – a bold move in itself – Pompey dominated with embarrassing ease to secure a priceless victory.
No doubt eyebrows were raised at the prospect of in-form David Nugent being switched wide left, Peter Crouch serving as a loan striker and Niko Kranjcar given a license to roam in the so-called hole.
It was the sort of tactical approach Adams had operated with at times, much to the annoyance of plenty of supporters.
Quite unlike the former England skipper, however, it worked magnificently.
Sean Davis was a revelation sitting in front of the back four, breaking up play with ease and always on hand to lend a helping foot and alleviate danger.
Similarly, Angelos Basinas beside him continued to show his quality in his fight to win over the doubters.
Still time to go yet, but he was once again impressive.
Even Kranjcar, a growing figure of the fans' frustration in recent weeks, gave his absolute all with his incessant work-rate and desire to reverse the club's disappointing fortunes.
Most crucial of all, the defence, the fabled back five from last season, were back on top form and providing the sort of obstinate obstacle sadly bereft from the Blues' play this season.
Put all that together and no wonder the hosts ended up with their first league clean sheet at Fratton Park since defeating Spurs on September 28 – 11 home games ago.
At the other end, full-backs Glen Johnson and Hermann Hreidarsson (both left) were just as influential, weighing in with the all-important goals.
On 70 minutes, Johnson galloped forward and drilled the ball into the far corner after his initial effort had been blocked.
Barely five minutes later and Hreidarsson met Jermaine Pennant's right-wing corner with a thunderous header and just as spectacular celebrations.
It's just a shame the man who put all this in place by firing Adams in the first place could not be there to witness such a transformation.
Sacha Gaydamak had spent the majority of the week in London staging summit talks with Peter Storrie over the way forward for the club.
Unfortunately, his stay didn't include actually watching Pompey – his continued absence from the directors' box once again noticeable.
Still, it wasn't all quite plain sailing, and had it not been for the intervention of David James, the hosts could have easily crumbled late on yet again.
A flying stop from substitute Ched Evans' 86th-minute bullet-like header brought the crowd to its feet, such was its improbable nature.
Had that entered the net, the mind boggles at the thought of another nervy finish as Pompey struggled to hold on to victory.
As it was, though, the man setting a new Premier League record of 536 appearances marked the occasion by grabbing what has this season been an elusive clean sheet.
Next up are Stoke on Saturday in a game Pompey can ill-afford to lose.
Let's just hope Hart's impressive impact can last a while longer yet.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Sunday 12 February 2012
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