Portsmouth boss Kenny Jackett still has the players on his side - is no 'dinosaur'

That’s the verdict of Blues writer Will Rooney, who believes signs of a united front were clearly evident in Tuesday night’s victory at Gillingham.

The 2-0 win came hot on the heels of last Saturday’s disappointing home lose to Doncaster Rovers.

That defeat – Pompey’s second Fratton Park loss already this season – saw the manager once again come under criticism from sections of supporters.

It also led some to question the players’ belief in Jackett’s methods – a topic that was initially raised following the defeat to Wigan at the end of September.

SEE ALSO: Jackett took the heat off Pompey players - now Ellis Harrison is determined to repay him

Speaking in the latest edition of Pompey Talk, though, Rooney said Tuesday night’s performance showed the squad was sticking by their under-fire boss.

However, he claimed such displays of unity were needed on a more consistent basis if the Blues are to quell those dissenting voices.

Rooney said: ‘Going back to listening to the BBC Solent fans' forum, even John Marquis was saying: “I haven't scored the goals, I've got to take responsibility myself”, so I think the players respect the manager.

‘And what’s well known in football is that Kenny Jackett is well-respected in football – every manager you speak to always has respect for him, they always say he sets his team up well, he’s a very good footballing man.

‘And I think the (Pompey) players understand that as well.

‘You only have to look at his CV.

‘Okay, there might be times when he's over pragmatic, things might not be as expansive as people want, but the players know he can deliver and he doesn't have big fall-outs with players.

‘Yes, maybe he doesn't understand players' situations a lot, maybe he's quite tunnel-visioned, thinking it's results-based, this is what I need from my team and sometimes players get left out in the cold.

‘That's frustrating. But in any team, any player who is left out in the cold is going to be frustrated.

‘Jackett has never come out and hung his players out to dry when he could have done.

‘He doesn't criticise players in public and tries to keep the flak off them.

‘He knows the score, he knows the game and knows he comes in for criticism.

‘But he believes in his own ability, he believes he can get this side up and if Portsmouth are going to stick with him then the players know he can deliver – he did it at Milwall, he did it at Wolves.

‘Now it's about those consistent performances and doing it on a regular basis.

‘Certainly. you can't go to Sunderland now and put in another lacklustre display attacking-wise.

‘You've got to go there and build on this, put four or five wins together and show they can be a promotion team.’

Rooney also said Jackett had been unfairly labelled a ‘dinosaur’ by fans on social media.

He added: ‘People call him a dinasour, but he's not.

‘Lee Brown, for example, gets flack for being caught out against Doncaster, but people want to see tacking full-backs in the modern game, people want to see full-backs taking a risk on 79 minutes…

‘Jackett could say just hold your ground and let the player in front of you go ahead and express themselves, and if we get caught on the counter you're there to mop anything up.

‘Instead, he’s told his full-backs to get at it.

‘Callum Johnson's been brought in as one of the most attacking full-backs in the division; you know, playing two up front - people would say that's an old-school formation, but playing Harness up there with Marquis is a little bit different. It's not your classic big man, little man, your Defoe/Crouch that Pompey fans were well accustomed to from the Premier League days.

'For me, the only thing now is, they just need to do it on a consistent basis because if you can perform like they did against Gillingham every game, fans are going to want to watch it.

‘But if you perform like you did against Doncaster, against Wigan, against Shrewsbury, when it's mechanical and the same ideas going forward when there’s no inventiveness, then people are going to switch off.

‘You need to vary it up.

‘I was encouraged by the pressing at Gillingham, there was more aggressive pressing going forward with Kenny Jackett telling players to squeeze up and put Gillingham under pressure, and that's what football is about now at the end of the day.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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