‘Portsmouth are all energy’: Stoke City boss’ verdict as he senses landmark moment in season
The Stoke boss reacts to yesterday’s see-saw events at Fratton Park.
Mark Robins believes his side matching high-tempo Pompey’s ‘energy and desire’ was key to Stoke’s comeback Fratton win.
And the Potters boss sensed a landmark moment for his side after their 2-1 win over Blues equalled a 79-year club record.
Stoke withstood a first-half onslaught from John Mousinho’s side and turned the game on its head after the break, in the battle of the two in-form Championship sides.
Robins on Pompey: ‘You’ve got to match that energy and that desire’
It meant they picked up a fifth successive away win, which is the first time the club have done so since 1947.
Robins acknowledged the qualities Pompey possess to cause problems, as he highlighted Mousinho’s men being ‘smart’ to open the visitors up from a corner for Tyrese Shades' opener.
He told the BBC: ‘It’s been a really difficult week.
‘We found a way to get the energy we needed to play in this game.
‘They are all-energy Pompey, they are all-energy and you’ve got to match that energy and that desire in possession and out of possession - or you get nothing. That’s how we found ourselves a goal down.
Junior (Tchamadeu) did really well to get back but it set them up for the shot then nobody links that set, but you don’t start to play back to your own goal.
‘Then I thought we were much more like us, which was needed because we managed to get ourselves in front with brilliant goals, the goals were outstanding.’
Robins is hoping negotiating the test that a trip to Fratton Park offers can be a key moment in Stoke’s season, as they briefly went top of the Championship after the Saturday lunchtime kick-off.
He added: ‘This game went very similarly to how we knew it was going to.
‘But we managed to do something that we’ve not managed to do too often, that’s to turn it around in terms of our performance.
‘We had that little bit more bravery on the ball.
‘You learn a lot about your players and they need to remember that this is what you have to do in this moment.
‘This will stand us in good stead and I hope that this is a really positive point in the season for us, in our development.
‘It can be on the back of three points, but we can’t get carried away.’