Skipper says Blues need to toughen up
When you are in the middle of a barren run, even luck is likely to turn against you.
Pompey had started brightly against Southend at Fratton Park, only to see Adam Webster’s opener cancelled out by Ryan Leonard.
But the visitors secured victory when Joe Pigott’s second half strike hit Paul Robinson to leave Paul Jones completely wrong-footed.
And the skipper was left cursing his misfortune after the Blues’ winless run was stretched to eight games.
Robinson said: “It’s disappointing and frustrating, especially after making a good start and getting ourselves in front.
“We were on the front foot, but then gave a poor goal away and that rocked us quite a bit. We’d had the momentum up until that point, so it shook us.
“The second half was fairly even – it was nip and tuck – but again we conceded.
“It could have gone anywhere – it was a half-decent block. But it’s painful to watch the ball trickle in like that.
“We had our chances after that and their keeper made a few good saves, so it’s a shame that we’ve come away with nothing.
“We threw everything at them towards the end and you have to credit Southend for the way they hung on.”
Robinson has called on his team-mates to rally together as Pompey try to turn their poor form around.
The defender said: “The bottom line is we have to stay strong as a group and work hard in training during the week.
“Maybe we need to toughen up a bit – physcially and mentally – come 3pm on a Saturday.
“Things will go against you in games and sometimes we don’t react as well as we probably should.”