Aston Villa beware - Portsmouth's daunting Fratton Fortress and its remarkable record awaits

The last time Danny Cowley’s men tasted defeat on home territory in any competition was on January 31 against Charlton.

Since that 2-1 loss, they have gone 15 matches unbeaten at Fratton Park – spanning more than eight months.

Even more impressively, that record has been established solely against League One opposition, including last year’s automatic promotion winners Rotherham and Wigan.

Now Villa Under-21s are booked in for a visit on Tuesday night, seeking to progress in the Papa John’s Trophy.

Tony Carss’ side lost 6-2 at home to West Brom in Premier League 2 on Friday, while suffered a 2-1 defeat at AFC Wimbledon in the previous Papa John’s Trophy group match.

And they will be challenged with overcoming a Blues side who have re-established their Fratton Park dominance.

During the current 15-game unbroken run, Cowley’s men have claimed 11 wins and four draws, all arriving in League One.

In that period, they have scored an average of 2.2 goals a game at home, with 33 netted overall, while have conceded 16.

Only Wycombe and Lincoln have denied the Blues a goal at Fratton in the entirety of 2022, with both fixtures finishing in goalless draws, most recently the Imps in August.

However, four goals have been hit against Doncaster (February), Accrington (March) and Cambridge United (August).

In addition, three goals in a match were posted against Fleetwood, Oxford United, Crewe, Rotherham, Lincoln, Gillingham, Wigan and Bristol Rovers.

This is not the first occasion in recent times that fortress Fratton has remained unbreached.

Under Kenny Jackett, the Blues were unbeaten at home for almost 17 months in league and play-off games until a 2-1 loss to Wigan in September 2020.

During that period, their sole defeats were against Premier League pair Southampton and Arsenal in the Carabao Cup and FA Cup respectively.

However, in that duration, coronavirus curtailed the 2019-20 season in March 2020 – although Jackett’s men returned for the play-offs, including a first-leg against Oxford at Fratton Park.

Now Villa Under-21s are the latest club seeking to topple Pompey on home territory and end this latest impressive streak.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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