‘Mean business’: Portsmouth boss’ Championship message of intent as he eyes Blackburn, Millwall and Swansea after landmark success

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John Mousinho has called on Pompey to use the landmark Preston victory as a defining moment in his side’s Championship season.

And the Blues boss believes his team are now showing they mean business in the second tier, after their maiden home win of the campaign.

The 3-1 victory over the Lilywhites will live long in the memory as it ended 207 days since their last victory at PO4, as League One title success was secured against Barnsley in April.

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The match will be remembered for being the afternoon Colby Bishop made a shock return, just three months on from open-heart surgery.

Bishop sensationally rounded off the win from the penalty spot 11 minutes after his introduction, with Mousinho demanding his team use the moment as a springboard for further success.

He said: ‘It’s really important. I think the catalyst is the whole game and the performance there.

‘I was slightly concerned about Tuesday night after the mid-week away performances, so I was really assured by that.

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‘I felt very confident going into the game, I felt much more confident. That’s not just me speaking after the game, I said it to the lads and the staff before the game.

‘The performances have looked like we’re a team who mean business.

‘Regardless of the result Tuesday night, I knew we would go for it and come back (from Plymouth), dust ourselves off and go again.

‘The challenge is to keep that going, because we’re still in the league position we’re in.

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‘There’s a lot of work to do for the rest of the season and when we come back in two weeks’ time we have Blackburn away, Millwall at home and Swansea away.

‘They are very tough fixtures and we have to be at it every second of every minute of the game.

‘So we need to use the result against Preston as a springboard to push on from here.

‘That’s what we can produce when we put things together against a really decent Championship side, who’ve been at this level for a long time with really good players.

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‘We can put those performance levels together and you get your rewards. That’s the level and we’re now at that level.’

Mousinsho told how attending the Portsmouth Supporters’ Trust AGM last week, confirmed to him there’s a conviction running through the fanbase over his team’s capabilities.

The challenge now is to carry that synergy into the three games in eight days which arrive after the international break.

Mousinho added: ‘There’s belief.

‘I was at the supporters’ trust conference on Wednesday night and 99.9 per cent of everyone there was really, really positive.

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‘That’s especially after the Plymouth and Hull performances, I think people can see what the lads are putting in and how much effort is going into games.

‘Yes, results have to be there and there’s been times when we’ve let ourselves down this season with certain performances.

‘But we seem to have put that behind us and that’s the challenge now going into those games when we get back.

‘There’s a minimum standard expected by Portsmouth fans and, when we produce that, there are no grumbles. So I’m really happy with everyone connected with the football club right now.’

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