Kenny Jackett remains confident Portsmouth v Swindon will go-ahead despite big freeze

The Blues have already been impacted by a frozen playing surface this season.

Their trip to Accrington on Saturday, January 2, was called off 24 hours before kick-off due to freezing conditions in the north west, with the game rearranged for April.

Meanwhile, Pompey’s trip to Charlton earlier this month had to be hastily rearranged for just three days later because of a waterlogged pitch at the Valley.

With a hectic fixture schedule already in place, the Blues would hate another late postponement.

SEE ALSO: Jackett speaks on relationship with Brett Pitman as he prepares for Fratton return

Yet, speaking to The News on Monday afternoon, Blues boss Jackett said every precaution had been taken to ensure the Fratton Park playing area remained in tip-top condition ahead of tonight’s fixture (7pm kick-off).

And he praised the efforts of the club’s groundsmen for their commitment in ensuring the best pitch possible as the mercury struggles to rise.

Jackett said: ‘The guys were were very sharp in making sure that the grass was trimmed and the pitch was cut back (after Saturday’s game).

‘And then on Sunday all of the guys were in to put the covers on to make sure, with the snow that was coming and the freeze that was coming, that the pitch had the maximum cover to give it the best chance.

‘So all good at the moment and we're optimistic.

‘There’s been four to five days of tough weather across the country.

‘But our pitch has stood up very well and the groundsmen have done an excellent job.

‘You look around the grounds and some of them have really been hit, so our guys have done very, very well and hopefully have looked after it over this period so we can keep playing.’

The temperature in Portsmouth today is expected to reach 1°C between now and 3pm, before dropping back to -1°C, where it will until tomorrow morning, at around 5pm.

The current wind-chill factor in the city is -5°C.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

The News has launched a new subscription offer which gives you unlimited access to all of our Pompey coverage, starting at less than £1 a week.

You can subscribe here to get the latest news and transfer updates from Fratton Park - and to support our local team of expert Pompey writers.