Portsmouth 3 Bristol City 0: Jordan Cross' verdict as Fratton whirlwind sets Championship benchmark

Fulham ‘85, Leicester ‘02, Sunderland ‘21 & Co. Was Bristol City ‘24 now going to take its place alongside the meteorological mayhem of yesteryear?

Well, perhaps not quite in the final reckoning. But what isn’t up for question is what this team served against a worthy Championship foe represents a windswept high second-tier watermark.

And this gale-force battering may just prove to be the moment which convinced us all this version of John Mousinho’s Pompey could just have enough to see through their mission this term.

That assignment is now clear and, in reality, has been from the day the Blues returned to terrain they last traversed 12 years ago. But as the wind continued to swirl and Pompey assistant head coach, Jon Harley, reflected on the significance of a performance setting a new Championship high, the picture is looking more promising than ever.

Back-to-back home wins make it a single defeat in five for a group now playing with a incessant honesty and structure, allowing them to breathe this rarefied second-tier air.

And it’s now actually nearly three months since Pompey tasted weekend defeat, with seven fixtures negotiated without that sinking feeling come Saturday tea-time.

Crucially, Mousinho’s men are not only off the foot of the table, but within a point of safety with games in hand on everyone above them. The upwardly mobile context to that is a ninth position in the form table, while many of those immediately above then continue to founder.

The man who has orchestrated that turnaround was afforded a bird’s eye view of his team tearing into a worthy opponent, as he saw his men take Bristol City apart with relentless abandon from the South Stand TV gantry.

A touchline ban was the catalyst for that vantage point, with Pompey’s high press and hard running too much for Liam Manning’s side to handle and returning very clear rewards in the opening two goals.

As Freddie Potts tore into Jason Knight with able assistance from Josh Murphy and goalscorer Colby Bishop for the opener, it was worth reflecting on how we have arrived at this point. The need for that reflection cemented as Callum Lang mugged the bedraggled Knight for the thriving Murphy’s fourth goal in five outings.

Mousinho’s Pompey 2.0 has emerged from early-season reflection and pragmatism, as the cold realities of this level and the conditions afforded the head coach became apparent.

Why? Because dominance of the ball at Championship level comes at a price - the one that sends £4m of talent from the bench at Swansea and a £2.5m striker into the action from the wings at PO4.

These are the norms the Blues now go up against every week, but finances they are currently a long way from competing with.

This will simply have to be addressed in a little over three weeks, as January transfer battle commences.

The challenge for Pompey is to remain in touch with rivals they’d looked like being unable to keep pace with a few weeks ago, until the cavalry arrives. It’s now looking doable.

The clearest evidence they can maintain their levels of toil for 90-plus minutes was seen among the swirling winds whipping across PO4.

The first 20 minutes saw a glut of openings carved out, before the man adding the presence so clearly missing from Pompey’s front line this term grabbed the second goal of a glorious return to action.

Yes, there was lull before the break, but one in which the man touted for Mousinho’s throne a couple of years ago saw his side create little in the way of clearcut openings.

It looked like Pompey weren’t going to gain value for their dominance, when the fearsome Lang lost his duel with Max O’Leary five minutes after the restart when mugging Rob Dickie.

Twelve minutes later, however, Bird was left in the Scouser’s tailwind, with Bishop’s vision the architect for Murphy’s finish.

It was the pair who bring the truest Championship quality to this group who combined to make it the kind of comfortable afternoon this performance warranted, with 18 minutes left. Murphy’s delicious delivery drew gasps and Lang feasted on the early festive gift.

‘You should have gone Christmas shopping,’ was the message to the forlorn 2,000-plus travelling fans who’d battled the red weather warnings to see their side ruthlessly dispatched.

So Pompey can at last moved forward with real Championship optimism for the first time - and the belief they really belong at the level.

The biggest win at PO4 in 10 months doesn’t cover up the questions of depth which so clearly remain however, especially, if the physical demands of this group are to be met.

But with Michael Eisner pledging relegation will not be the outcome this season, we can at last begin to believe that bold statement isn’t just empty rhetoric.