Pompey season in review - April

Our total stood at 53pts from a possible 96 so far, so still roughly a 50% success rate in terms of points gained out of those available throughout the 2007/08 season but April was to see a rapid decline - in out league form anyway...

The month started with our biggest game in donkies years, the FA cup semi final! The palaver surrounding the tickets, the fact that we had the game moved to a ridiculously early time of 12.15pm was all cast aside as many of us fulfilled our dreams by seeing Pompey play at Wembley... It might not have been the cup final, which would have been our ideal occasion to watch us at the nations home for the first time but we were there! It got better though as by a little after 2pm on 5th April we knew would come back again the following month for the cup final as Kanu scored the decisive goal to beat West Brom 1-0!

Midweek saw a return to league action and a trip to Harry Redknapp's old team West Ham. We huffed and we puffed, but could not break through, but managed to in the end with a fine goal from Niko Kranjcar to seal another 1-0 away win.

For the first time since confirming out place in the FA cup final we returned to Fratton next. A near packed house greeted the heroes that weekend as Newcastle came to town for a game that was on setanta sports I believe? Our old trouble of failing to score at home returning to haunt us and but for David James we would have lost, but as it was we played out an entertaining enough 0-0 draw... Minds were starting to turn even more elsewhere...

The following weekend we were off to Citeh, as were the sky sports cameras. I had a cracking day out, and from where I stood - yep stood for the entire 90 minutes without once being told to sit down, a rarity in this day and age! - it was a decent game, but mistakes cost us dear... We were the better side for the opening minutes but somehow found ourselves two down inside 15 minutes, but when John Utaka pulled one back you still thought we could come back. Hermann Hreidarsson's needless sending off before the break left us with it all to do, but we still looked like getting something until another error allowed Benjani to brilliantly finish and kill off the game 3-1. His name was sung throughout, and you could see he wanted to come over to us but restrained himself.

We ended the month with the sky sports cameras again in attendance as Blackburn came to Fratton. We offered little and got nothing, losing 1-0 and ending the month on a sour note, but we were still in the FA cup final!

4pts from 12 on offer was a clear indication as to where our priorities now lay, and as frustrating as it was at the time, looking back and knowing that things worked out for the best I can accept this - I just wish I had known 100% at the end of April what I know now...

PLAY UP POMPEY!

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