Portsmouth won 6-1 against King's Lynn Town on a mild afternoon at Fratton Park.
Goals from Rasmus Nicolaisen, Tom Naylor, Sean Raggett, Marcus Harness, Ellis Harrison and Jordy Hiwula saw Pompey ease into the third round of the Emirates FA Cup.
Dayle Southwell did pull a goal back for Town at 4-0, but it wasn't enough to spark a comeback.
Story of the Game
Barely two minutes were on the clock when the home side took the lead. An in-swinging corner from Cam Pring was met well by Rasmus Nicolaisen, and his header found the bottom corner of the Town Net.
As expected Pompey dominated the ball following their goal and were putting some great passages of passing play together but not many clear cut chances following the opener.
King's Lynn did have a couple of half-chances through Sonny Carey and Adam Marriot but nothing that troubled Alex Bass in the Portsmouth goal.
Town did grow into the game as the first half went on but were finding it hard to crack the Pompey defence.
Pompey did double their lead on the half-hour mark as a ball was poorly dealt with by Town and it ran out to Tom Naylor who hit it so sweetly it pinged off the upright and into the net, no chance for the Town keeper, Archie Mair, who could only watch.
Portsmouth continued to dominate the half and were unlucky not be up by more at the break.
Pompey were able to add a third just after half-time. Ronan Curtis whipped in a corner from the right, and Sean Raggett was there at the back post to head it home.
The tie was put beyond any doubt just before the hour as Pompey launched a rapid counter-attack with Ellis Harrison, who found Marcus Harness who drilled in to make it four.
Following the fourth, Town did enjoy more of the ball but did struggle to create any clear cut chances.
Town were able to pull a goal back in the final quarter of the game. In the 68th minute substitute, Dayle Southwell latched onto a knockdown brilliantly and finished well past Bass.
Any hope of a Town comeback was extinguished minutes later as Pring was fouled in the box by Ross Barrows and Harrison sent the keeper the wrong way and made it five.
It was six in the 80th minute as sub Jordy Hiwula bent it wonderfully into the top corner giving the keeper no chance.
Could have been seven just before the end as the ball is cut across to Harness, but Mair did well to save it.
Takeaways From The Game
Pompey will be a tough nut to crack
Portsmouth secured their place in the third round of the FA Cup and Premier League teams will do well to avoid a trip to Fratton Park in round three. Kenny Jackett has got Portsmouth playing some tidy football and look quite resolute at the back and only allowed King's Lynn limited attempts at goal, mainly from distance and set pieces.
Curtis the main Pompey man
It is no surprise Ronan Curtis gets picked for the Irish national team is a real gem of a player. Unlucky not to get a goal here but his link-up play and his passing was top-notch. He was at the centre of a lot of what went well for Portsmouth and could cause a Premier League defence a problem in round three. Shame he was taken off just before the hour, which stops him being Man of the Match.
Defiant in defeat
Despite the result, there were a lot of positives for King's Lynn to take away from this game. The way they responded to going behind so early was admirable and were unlucky not to find an equaliser before Naylor's goal. Town were perfect in the first half and enjoyed some excellent spells of possession but just struggled to make any of it count. Even when they were 6-1 down, they kept going, which was something quite special to see.
Man of the Match
Marcus Harness
A very tough pick today as everyone in a Pompey shirt played very well. Honourable mentions go to Curtis and Naylor but for his determination and his goal and assist the award of MOTM goes to Harness. Harness was full of determination all game and was rewarded with a goal in the second half and could've had two if it wasn't for a great save from the keeper. An outstanding performance overall.
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