In a goal of few opportunities played on a difficult Deepdale playing surface, the decisive goal was on 40 minutes when Alfie Devine’s looping header from Andrija Vukcevic’s cross found the net.
The Blues may fee; aggrieved not to have won a first-half penalty for Jordan Storey’s challenge on Adrian Segecic, while Andre Dozzell also drew a smart save from Dai Cornell.
Yet they struggled to carve out too many chances and ended up losing 1-0 – and here are our player ratings...
5. Connor Ogilvie - 7
Maintained his place in the centre of Pompey’s defence and again looked very assured. Strong in the hard, hard in the tackle and never looked out of place. So close to levelled in stoppage time with a header from a right-wing corner. | Graham Hunt/ProSportsImages
6. Zak Swanson - 6
(Replaced by Aji Alese on 86 mins) Solid enough afternoon and defensively sound, but, like many of his team-mates couldn’t raise his game enough to impact the game. | Graham Hunt/ProSportsImages
7. Andre Dozzell - 6
(Replaced by Gustavo Caballero on 79 mins) Neat and tidy enough, with a few attempted killer passes agonisingly narrowly falling short. Just needed a bit more from him. | Graham Hunt/ProSportsImages
8. Ebou Adams - 8 MOTM
Crunching into tackles, driving Pompey forward, he was the non-stop midfield catalyst, always trying to find a way back. Brought the biggest smile of the day with a theatrical response to Offiah’s dive. | Graham Hunt Photo: Graham Hunt