PREVIEW: Pompey look to keep promotion form going at Fratton
Friday, 1st Nov 2013 16:08 by pompey-fans.com staff

Pompey face Exeter City at Fratton Park on Saturday at 3pm looking to maintain the form which saw them pick up eight points from four games in October.

And Guy Whittingham's side could be boosted by the return of striker David Connolly from a calf and an Achilles injury. Sonny Bradley also returns to the centre of defence after serving a one match ban for picking up five yellow cards.

Forward Tom Craddock (knee) and full-back Marcos Painter (calf) are also close to returning, but Saturday might be too soon for them to be involved in the match-day squad.

Exeter, who have shown some good form on their travels, including a 4-0 win at Scunthorpe, are sweating on the fitness of defender Pat Baldwin, who is struggling with a groin strain and may be without Danny Butterfield (calf) while Jamie Reid continues his recovery from an injury picked up on Northern Ireland Under-21 duty.

The Devon side look set to have a big following for their first visit to Fratton Park since 1983. A special train has been arranged to bring fans to the game. Exeter are also fan-owned like Pompey and in the past five years have made huge strides, reestablishing themselves in the Football League and even gaining promotion back to the third tier, only for them to drop back a couple of seasons ago.

Despite having to cut their playing budget this summer, manager Paul Tidsdale has still assembled a competitive squad which will test Pompey's own promotion aspirations, rekindled after October's good form.

League 2 is extraordinarily tight this season and Tuesday's result which saw lowly York thrash Scunthorpe 4-1, who would have gone joint top had they won, underlines the inconsistency of team in this league.

Despite a relatively slow start to the season, Pompey utility player Shaun Cooper still believes promotion is a realistic goal for the club.

“There’s no secret to doing well — it’s just about grinding out results week in, week out. You need to work hard and everyone has to share that goal — to get promoted," told the official site.

“It’s about finding that level of consistency and I don’t see any reason why we can’t achieve that here. It’s the same principle for every game. We have to work hard, concentrate on our jobs and be better than the opposition.

“If we’re on top of our game and do what the gaffer tells us, then I fancy us in every match.”