Pompey face fellow pretenders with top six spot in sight again
Friday, 19th Jan 2018 21:13 by pompey-fans.com staff

Pompey are involved in a battle of play-off pretenders when they go to Rotherham this weekend.

The Millers are eighth, Pompey seventh, and either could overtake sixth-placed Charlton with a win at the New York Stadium, though only if the Addicks slip up at home to Walsall.

Pompey's away record is not great - their last six on the road in the League One have yielded two wins but four defeats, the latest setback coming at Bristol Rovers on New Year's Day.

It's 15 seasons since Pompey visited Rotherham and that was at Millmoor, not their latest home, on a day when gold-shirted Pompey won 3-2 on their way to the Division One title.

Pompey boss Kenny Jackett told the official club website the game was part of an exciting multi-club battle to claim play-off spots.

'They are another side who have play-off aspirations like us — and quite rightly,' he said. 'A lot other clubs will be looking to break into that group as well, so it’s going to be a real race for the top six over the next few months.

'Rotherham have been up there the whole season and will be looking to bounce back to the Championship at the first attempt.'

Pompey will be without Gareth Evans and Stuart O'Keefe, the latter out for two to three months after groin surgery, plus other long-term casualties. But one player back in the reckoning is Kal Naismith, who told the club website he was, in classic footballer style, taking a game at a time.

Naismith said: 'We’re sitting seventh in the league and have got some big games coming up, but we’ll look at this one first. With the matches we’ve got left we’re happy with the position that we’re in, although we always look to do better.'

Rotherham are out to complete the double - they won 1-0 at Fratton in early September in a result that helped them recover from a slow start to the campaign.