Pompey are 3-1 victors over Royals
Pompey beat a young Reading side 3-1 in a training ground friendly held at their Copnor base.
Conor Chaplin’s brace and a goal from Chad Field secured the victory against a Royals side managed by former Fratton favourite Martin Kuhl.
Reading’s Alex Ward was the busier of the two keepers early on and made a great reflex save to deny Snorre Nilsen before tipping Brandon Haunstrup’s deflected effort over the bar.
But he was unable to stop the Blues from breaking the deadlock on 30 minutes when a Chaplin corner was headed on by Adam Webster for FIELD to touch home from close range.
And the hosts doubled their advantage soon after, as a delightful exchange of passes between Gary Roberts and CHAPLIN ended with the latter sweeping the ball into the net.
Haunstrup almost added a third goal before the interval, but fired into the side netting following good work from Nigel Atangana.
Pompey did extend their lead early in the second half, however, after Chaplin, Roberts and Kal Naismith were contenders for a free-kick 25 yards out.
It was CHAPLIN who took it and the teenager fired a sweet shot into the top right corner that left Ward helpless.
The heavens then opened and the torrential rain, coupled with a flurry of substitutions, did its best to disrupt proceedings.
But Reading were still able to reduce the deficit, courtesy of a Noor Husin drive from the edge of the area.
A superb last-gasp challenge from Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain and a smart stop from Darryl Flahavan then ensured the Blues would not be breached again.
Pompey: Bass (Flahavan 46); Nilsen (Joseph-Buadi 46), Webster, Field, Haunstrup; Atangana (May 60), Boco; Naismith (Haitham 74), Hollands (Close 46), Roberts (Oxlade-Chamberlain 60); Chaplin (Sayers 74)
Reading: Ward (Tupper 80), Lawal (Bennett 82), Watson (Barrett 66), Owusu, Rinomhota (Smith 71), Shaughnessy, Husin, Fosu, Fridjonsson, Semedo, Vastsuk (Mirimar 46)
Referee: Alex Fisher