Pompey simply weren't at the races against Shrewsbury as the Blues showed they're just not ready to play their way out of League Two.
Andy Awford's side succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at a wet and windy Fratton Park; undone by long-range strikes either side of half-time as the number of question marks over the boss' future continued to multiply.
On the back of defeat at Wimbledon, the hosts continued with an unchanged starting XI which saw loan duo Nyron Nosworthy and Cole Kpekawa made their home debuts in royal blue as Ben Chorley looked to captain Pompey to all three points.
However, it was clear shortly after kick-off that the hosts would be up against it as the promotion-chasing Shrews showed just why they're challenging among the league's high-flyers, and why Pompey are falling well below the quality bar as set by League Two's play-off hopefuls.
Most surprising for me, watching on from my regular seat at Fratton Park, was Awford's decision — just shortly after stating that play-off hopes were now over — to field a couple of loanees rather than blood in youngsters ahead of next season.
Conor Chaplin's second-half cameo saw the youngster produce a couple of good touches but any hopes of a comeback looked over well before he'd crossed the white line, while Dan Butler and Ben Close watched on from the bench and Adam Webster wasn't involved at all.
Surprising, for me at least, when you consider that Pompey are now playing for pride (despite what we saw this afternoon) and the club's youngsters remain largely unused at a time when any modicum of experience that can be gained ahead of next season is seemingly spurned on a well-aged centre half and a youngster who is no better than what we already have.
Anyway, back to the match.
The hosts were very flat throughout the 90 minutes and despite the 2-0 defeat, I'd class only Paul Jones as a player deserving of any credit after pulling off a couple of excellent second-half saves to prevent a Shrews' rout.
The defence of Kpekawa, Chorley, Nosworthy and Danny East showed a significant lack of leadership and control as seen in previous weeks but with Paul Robinson and Jack Whatmough out for the remainder of the season, that's a fairly reasonable expectation for a back four who've yet to feature together at Fratton Park.
Chorley — as far as I'm concerned — isn't good enough to play for Portsmouth Football Club. By no means is he a scapegoat for our problems but, in my opinion, he just has not got the legs for League Two football and he should not be our captain. In the same way, Nosworthy was well off the pace this afternoon.
The midfield was also unconvincing when on the ball. James Dunne battled away in trademark fashion in the heart of midfield and plucky Jed Wallace, who boasts Wolves among interested parties as the summer approaches, tried to make things tick and work as a link between midfield and attack.
However, much credit to the visitors. There's a reason why they're challenging for promotion to League One and they know how to play in League Two. Pompey don't.
I don't have enough fingers or thumbs to count how many times I've heard "we're making them look decent” from those around me this season. Fact of the matter is that not only do many teams see playing at Fratton Park as a bit of a coup, but they also know how to play in this division.
Awford needs to work hard on this if he's to stay on as Pompey boss, in my opinion. We need to become that gritty, not-always-attractive side that ground out victories to get us up the league. There's nothing wrong with attractive football but if we're to see League One again anytime soon, we need to be digging in during every match as if we're fighting for our lives.
Sacrifices have to be made in our hunt for promotion next season. Now's the time to be getting the kids on the pitch, giving them an hour and working out whether they look like they could make it. If not, farm them out for experience or flog them off completely.
Many of those in blue looked ready for their summer holidays this afternoon. That's not the character which Pompey need — not now, not ever. Whether you're playing for promotion, play-offs or safety, or whether your season is over, you should always be playing for pride.
And frankly, if you can't get excited about playing in front of 15,000 fans, you really shouldn't be at Portsmouth Football Club, should you?
Still, here's to next season. But we could have said that in January.
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