Fleetwood 2 Portsmouth 5: What they said

Ben Thompson celebrates with second-half scorer Jamal Lowe / Picture: Daniel Chesterton

Goals by Ben Thompson, Brett Pitman, Anton Walkes and Jamal Lowe (2) saw off Joey Barton's side, who led 2-1 at the break.

Here's what some key figures had to say about the game...

Kenny Jackett: 'We came through a lot. Different tests were thrown at us and we dealt with them well. Fleetwood have some good attacking players. We had to overcome some decisions, but I’m glad we did that with a storming second-half performance.’

Goalscorer Anton Walkes: 'If we want to get to where we want to at the end of the season, we are going to have to go through stages like that. We've had a few unfortunate results recently, but this just shows we have that character and we finished strongly against Fleetwood. We needed a little bit of luck after a few decisions didn’t go in our favour and it kind of balanced out. We made the most of it and are very happy to come away with three points.

‘From what I saw (for the Fleetwood penalty), Matt made a genuine attempt for the ball, you’ve got to throw your body on the line and obviously they then scored from the penalty the referee had given. I’m not saying the decision was a bad one, it was just one of those things where sometimes you get them, sometimes you don’t. But we got the win in the end – and that’s what really matters.’

Michael Eisner‏ (on Twitter): 'Fantastic watching the team keep their composure going into the second half and then capitalizing on opportunities. Great way to end 2018. Onward! #PUP.'

News chief sports writer Neil Allen: 'Pompey ended 2018 as League One leaders following a stunning second half. Kenny Jackett's man had been trailling 2-1 after 51 minutes, but Dean Marney's sending off transformed the match.

'The ruthless Blues eventually ran out 5-2 winners, with Jamal Lowe scoring twice, as they seized advantage. A heartening end to the year, particularly following the disappointing Boxing Day loss at Gillingham.'

Pompey reporter Jordan Cross: 'Pompey passed the latest test of their promotion credentials in emphatic style at Fleetwood. The Blues bounced back from Boxing Day defeat at Gillingham and opened up a three-point advantage at the top of League One with the 5-2 thrashing of the Cod Army. But they had to do so after being 2-1 down at the break and with questions being asked of their resolve after the Priestfield loss.

'Four second-half goals delivered the definitive response with Pompey brutal in their attacking play and with both Ronan Curtis and Jamal Lowe shining once again - as they have for much of the season.'

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