Kenny Jackett has his say if Danny Cowley should be named permanent Portsmouth boss after missing out on League One play-offs

The Blues' promotion hopes came to a meek ending on the final day of the season, having been in the driving seat ahead of their clash with Accrington.

Pompey went into the Fratton Park encounter knowing a victory would guarantee a spot in the play-offs.

However, the Blues suffered a 1-0 defeat and were leapfrogged by Oxford after they ran out 4-0 winners over Burton.

Cowley took over the Fratton Park helm in March against the backdrop of a woeful run of results that resulted in Jackett losing his job.

The former Lincoln chief was handed a contract for the final 12 games of the campaign and tasked with securing a top-six berth.

And despite falling short of that target, Jackett – who spent almost four years in charge at PO4 – believes Cowley should be given a new Pompey deal.

Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: ‘From the outside now, it looks a good fit.

‘I think he handles himself very well, has got a good record and Lincoln and Huddersfield and there's no reason why he can't take Portsmouth forward.

‘They do need to rebuild. There are quite a number of players who are out of contract and, ultimately, it is a disappointing day because they started the day with it in their own hands.

‘If ever Portsmouth needed the crowd, they needed it today to get the performance and momentum going into the play-offs.

‘It wasn't quite there and it did need the Charlie Daniels chance to go in to give the last five minutes a bit of a run to get in there.

‘Ultimately, they didn't create enough going forwards and one really good strike from Phillips has cost them.

‘It's a disappointing day when it's in your hands and then out of it.’