Dane Scarlett came off the bench to grab a stoppage-time winner for Pompey against Burton at Fratton Park.

It looked as though they would be left frustrated by an Albion outfit who tried to turn the contest as scrappy as possible.

But the Blues, to their credit, kept going right until the end and were rewarded when their Tottenham loanee struck at the death.

John Mousinho made four changes from the side that were beaten by table-topping Plymouth at the weekend.

Joe Rafferty made his first appearance since suffering a stomach injury at the beginning of September, while Paddy Lane was handed a full debut.

There were also returns for Louis Thompson and Reeco Hackett, with the latter on target after coming off the bench against Argyle.

But Marlon Pack and Di’Shon Bernard both failed late fitness tests, while Ryan Tunnicliffe and Michael Jacobs dropped to the bench.

Former Pompey ‘Player of the Season’ winner Craig MacGillivray started between the sticks for the visitors, but there was no place for Gassan Ahadme.

The home side controlled possession throughout the 45 minutes, with most of the action taking place inside the opposition half.

And a couple of dangerous deliveries from Owen Dale and Joe Morrell both somehow managed to evade Colby Bishop.

Morrell then lined up a 25-yard shot that was deflected inches past the post, as the hosts continued to threaten.

They were certainly playing with a positive mindset and Connor Ogilvie’s shot was held by MacGillivray.

But Burton almost took the lead completely against the run of play on 23 minutes, with Josh Oluwayemi making a brilliant save to deny Joe Powell from point-blank range.

The action was soon back down the other end, though, and Tom Hamer did well to defend Lane’s free-kick at the back post.

Pompey’s best chance arrived just before the break, with Sean Raggett not quite able to get enough on another Lane set-piece to beat MacGillivray.

Half Time: Pompey 0 Burton 0

It was the visitors who were first to threaten after breaking quickly up the pitch following the restart, but Josh Walker could not beat Oluwayemi from a tight angle.

Pompey had been trying to pick out Bishop in the box throughout the first half and it finally happened on 52 minutes.

But when Hackett’s low centre landed at the striker’s feet, he fired uncharacteristically over the crossbar.

The Brewers then breathed a sigh of relief when Deji Oshilaja – who had earlier been booked – escaped with a talking to from referee Tim Robinson for a challenge on Morrell.

It was proving tough to break down a resolute visiting back-line, but there was an opportunity just past the hour mark.

The lively Dale sent the ball into a crowded penalty area and it was laid off by Ogilvie for Lane to fire over from the edge of the box.

Pompey were not making the most of their chances and after advancing up the pitch, Dale’s wasteful shot cleared the crossbar.

Albion were quite happy to frustrate their hosts – as evidenced by their high foul count – while boss Dino Maamria was booked for protesting too vigorously in the technical area.

Mousinho searched for inspiration with a triple change on 73 minutes, as Lane, Hackett and Thompson made way for Scarlett, Jacobs and Tunnicliffe.

It was two men on from the start who combined for the next chance, though, with Dale not able to rise high enough to keep his header down from Ogilvie’s delivery.

Bishop made a better connection with Rafferty’s cross seconds later, although this time MacGillivray came to the rescue with a fine save.

Joe Pigott replaced Dale for the closing stages as Pompey tried to force a late winner and it almost arrived late on.

Tunnicliffe drilled the ball into the mixer with plenty of power, but skipper John Brayford hacked it off the line.

It looked like that would be that – but the hosts were finally rewarded for their patience deep into stoppage-time.

The ball was sent into the box by Ogilvie and nodded down by Pigott for SCARLETT to whip into the net, ensuring Fratton erupted with a mixture of joy and relief.

Pompey (4-2-3-1): Oluwayemi; Rafferty, Raggett (c), Towler, Ogilvie; Morrell, Thompson (Tunnicliffe 73); Dale (Pigott 86), Lane (Jacobs 73), Hackett (Scarlett 73); Bishop
Goals: Scarlett 90+2
Subs not used: Steward, Freeman, Hume

Burton (3-4-1-2): MacGillivray; Brayford (c), Hughes, Moon; Hamer, Shaughnessy (Carayol 82), Oshilaja, Ashworth; Powell (Lavelle 86); Taylor, Walker (Winnall 71)
Booked: Ashworth, Dale, Oshilaja, Hughes
Subs not used: Kean, McCann, Wakelin, Kirk

Referee: Tim Robinson

Attendance: 16,434 (103 away fans)