Colby Bishop’s goal earned Portsmouth a 1-0 win over 10-man Watford which sealed their safety in the Sky Bet Championship.
Pompey are six points clear of the drop zone with two games to play but, with Hull and Derby still to play each other, their status in the second tier is secure.
The hosts scored the only goal after 25 minutes through Bishop, who nodded the ball home from close range.
Watford were then reduced to 10 men in the 57th minute when Kevin Keben was sent off for bringing down Josh Murphy just outside the area.
Pompey got off to a bright start and carved their first chance after only four minutes as Bishop helped the ball on to Matt Ritchie who forced a smart double save out of Watford goalkeeper Egil Selvik.
The home side had a narrow escape in the 17th minute when the Hornets’ Tom Dele-Bashiru was found free but fired straight at goalkeeper Nicolas Schmid.
John Mousinho’s men took the lead in the 25th minute when Selvik could only parry Murphy’s cross on to Bishop’s head.
Selvik saved Bishop’s initial effort but Pompey’s star striker reacted quickest to head the loose ball home from point-blank range.
Watford, with nothing but pride to play for, slowly but surely worked their way into the contest and Schmid had to produce a superb save at full stretch to push Imran Louza’s 30-yard effort on to the crossbar.
Ritchie tested the reactions of Selvik at the start of the second half when the former Newcastle man saw his long-range effort pushed around the post two minutes after the interval.
Bishop should have doubled his tally when Freddie Potts put a wonderful cross straight onto his head only to be denied by another smart stop from the busy Selvik.
Watford continued to pose a threat and home defender Rob Atkinson pulled off a brilliant block to keep out Rocco Vata’s effort.
Murphy, one of Pompey’s star performers over the season, then set off on a 50-yard solo run before seeing his shot saved by Selvik.
The visitors’ hopes of a comeback looked over when they were reduced to 10 men as Keben was dismissed for taking out Murphy with a professional foul.
Bishop passed up another decent chance when he miscued a header as Pompey looked for the second goal to seal the precious points.
The match-winner would later be forced off injured along with Murphy, which will be a big concern for manager Mousinho ahead of the last two games of the season.
But that did not dampen the spirit at a sold-out Fratton Park as the south coast side held firm to secure their place in the Championship.
Jim Goodwin paid tribute to his dogged Dundee United side following the 2-1 comeback win over Aberdeen which clinched fourth place and a European spot.The Terrors, who returned to the William Hill Premiership this season, had lost their four post-split matches going into the final fixture against the Dons, who were two points ahead and looking in fine fettle when Danish attacker Jeppe Okkels score...
Barry Ferguson was left infuriated by one of the worst decisions he has ever seen and called for the introduction of goal-line technology after Rangers were on the wrong end of a pivotal first-half call in their season-concluding 2-2 draw away to Hibernian.With Gers leading through an early Cyriel Dessers strike, Nico Raskin looked to have put them two ahead in the 15th minute but Hibs defender Ro...
AFC Wimbledon manager Johnnie Jackson believes the toughness of his side has driven them to the League Two play-off final after they defeated Notts County 1-0 at Plough Lane.An early strike by Josh Neufville gave the Dons a 2-0 aggregate victory that was as deserved as it was hard-earned.The South London outfit have not let in a goal in the last three games, and further demonstrated why their defe...
Dundee United clinched a European place after leapfrogging Aberdeen into fourth place in the William Hill Premiership with a stunning 2-1 comeback win.Danish attacker Jeppe Okkels scored his first goal for the Dons since signing on loan from Preston in January after 15 minutes with the visitors controlling the game.United gradually came back into it and in the 56th minute defender Declan Gallagher...
Rangers were left to lament a contentious first-half moment as they ended a largely dispiriting William Hill Premiership campaign with a 2-2 draw away to Hibernian.Second-placed Gers went ahead early on through top scorer Cyriel Dessers and felt they should have doubled their lead in the 15th minute when Nico Raskin looked to have forced the ball over the line. However, play was waved on and Hibs ...
James Forrest gave Celtic fans the finale they craved as he equalised in stoppage time against St Mirren to extend his run of scoring for the club to 16 consecutive seasons.Forrest left it until the league season was 38 games old to get off the mark on a day when he was chosen to deliver the William Hill Premiership trophy to his team-mates ahead of Callum McGregor lifting it for the fourth year r...
AFC Wimbledon secured their place in the League Two play-off final as they defeated Notts County 2-0 on aggregate.An early strike by Josh Neufville gave the south London side a 1-0 second-leg victory at the Cherry Red Records Stadium.The Dons will face Walsall at Wembley on Monday, May 26 for a place in League One.With veteran striker David McGoldrick ruled out because of injury, and Alassana Jatt...
David Martindale believes the pressure is off his Livingston side after they booked their place in the Premiership play-off final with a comfortable victory over Partick Thistle.The Lions progressed 4-0 on aggregate, securing a second 2-0 win with Jamie Brandon’s opener added to by Stevie May’s stunning half-volley.They will now face either Dundee or Ross County over two legs, with the...
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca pointed to Marc Cucurella’s Barcelona connections after the defender headed the only goal against Manchester United to keep his side’s Champions League hopes in their own hands.The 26-year-old got on the end of Reece James’ cross in the 71st minute to power home his seventh goal of the season and rescue the Blues just as two vital points looked to ...
Walsall boss Mat Sadler said guiding the Saddlers to a play-off final is the proudest moment of his footballing career after they completed a 4-1 aggregate win over Chesterfield.Late goals from Charlie Lakin and Levi Amantchi – with an Armando Dobra consolation for the Spireites in between – earned Walsall a 2-1 victory on the night.And it provided a measure of redemption for a side wh...
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- 4 Rangers thump Aberdeen to end five-match winless streak at Ibrox
- 5 Newcastle beat 10-man Chelsea to take step towards Champions League spot
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