Keith Hackett reacts to Matt Ritchie incident in Portsmouth v Derby – ‘Careless’
Portsmouth fans were put through the wringer on Saturday as they played out a 2-2 draw with Derby County at Fratton Park.
All four goals came in the final 20 minutes on the South Coast in what was widely dubbed a Championship survival ‘six-pointer’ – Rob Atkinson registering three of them, two at the right end.
Colby Bishop saw an early penalty saved which would have put Pompey into the early ascendancy, and a former Premier League referee has discussed the incident leading up to the spot-kick.
Matt Ritchie won ‘sure’ penalty at Fratton Park
It was barely seven minutes into proceedings when Portsmouth threatened to once again make their mark early at Fratton Park.
Ritchie latched onto a ball just inside the Derby County area and was tripped by goalkeeper Jacob Zetterstrom, who was shown a yellow card and a penalty immediately awarded.
Bishop stepped up, but saw Zetterstrom redeem himself for the Rams by making a diving stop to his left to keep the contest goalless.
The eventual draw keeps a three-point gap between John Mousinho’s side and Derby, with four games remaining for the majority of the sides around the bottom third of the table.
Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett, speaking exclusively to Pompey News, affirmed the decision that it was a clear penalty for the foul on Ritchie.
“Yes, this is a penalty for sure. The goalkeeper is playing the man and forgetting about the ball,” Hackett said.
“[It’s a] careless challenge – therefore a foul and a penalty kick. The referee [is] ideally positioned to make the correct call.”
Portsmouth move down but are clearer of drop zone
On a day of twists and turns, Portsmouth have moved down two places to 19th – but have ironically still moved further away from the relegation zone in terms of points.
Oxford United, Stoke City and Plymouth Argyle were the big winners of Saturday – Argyle in particular carving out a comeback win over promotion hopefuls Sheffield United when defeat would have seen survival look impossibly bleak.
| POS | Championship table 2024-25 | PLD | PTS | GD |
| 17 | Oxford United | 42 | 48 | -17 |
| 18 | Stoke City | 42 | 47 | -11 |
| 19 | PORTSMOUTH | 42 | 46 | -16 |
| 20 | Hull City | 41 | 44 | -9 |
| 21 | Derby County | 42 | 43 | -10 |
| 22 | Cardiff City | 42 | 42 | -21 |
| 23 | Luton Town | 42 | 40 | -26 |
| 24 | Plymouth Argyle | 42 | 40 | -38 |
Hull City – Pompey’s final day opponents on 3 May at Fratton Park – are still yet to play, facing play-off contenders Coventry City on Monday.
Blues fans, however, would rather forget about Coventry for some time after last Wednesday.
Four huge contests remain in which Mousinho’s men must simply stagger over the line any which way they can. A Good Friday trip to Norwich City is up next, followed by Watford on Easter Monday, back on Portsea.