An improvement in Pompey's performances is being demanded as they near the halfway mark in their League Two promotion bid.
Visits to Newport and Yeovil are games 22 and 23 in their season, and boss Paul Cook knows they need to step up a gear or two if they're to break into the coveted top three spots.
They'll probably be glad it's two away games ahead of them this week as it's on the road where most of their recent points have come - with wins at Luton and Grimsby in their last two trips.
Cook praised the sides ahead of Pompey at the top of the table but said there was a lot of football to be played.
He told the Pompey website: 'Unfortunately, the teams above us are setting a fantastic pace and we have to say well done to them. We haven’t been able to bridge that gap as much as we would have liked and that’s what we’ve got to now concentrate on.
'It doesn’t worry me with 25 games of the season still to go, although logically our home form will be questioned at the moment. We go to Luton on a Tuesday night and there are two teams on the pitch trying to win a football match.
'But there are certain games where you haven’t got that and there is one side trying to stop the other from winning. That’s not an excuse — it’s just the way football is. So far we haven’t been able to adapt well enough.
'The lads are doing okay, but we know there must be an improvement if we want to put a run together and get into the top three.'
Cook has indicated he is set to rest Gary Roberts on Boxing Day, which could mean both Conor Chaplin and Michael Smith starting up front.
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