It was an afternoon to forget for Pompey at Shrewsbury.
Shaun Whalley and Stefan Payne both capitalised on individual errors to give the second-placed hosts a 2-0 victory.
Nathan Thompson felt that the Blues could capitalise on a solid – if unspectacular – first half display in Shropshire.
And so the right-back was annoyed that the visitors were so underwhelming after the interval.
He said: “I think we had the best chances before the break and recently we’ve been strong in the second half, so we felt we could do that again.
“But it just didn’t happen on this occasion and that’s really disappointing. It was very frustrating for us.
"It’s tough to play against and so we needed to show a bit more composure."
“Conceding goals in the manner that we did is tough to take, but the important thing is that you learn from those mistakes.
“On a personal level, there were a couple of crosses that I wasn’t happy with and you have to capitalise on those opportunities when you get into key areas.
“Shrewsbury worked their socks off for the whole game and were relentless with their pressing.
“You saw from the second goal that they were still doing that after 80 minutes and that’s why they’re in the position they are.
“It’s tough to play against and so we needed to show a bit more composure, especially on a difficult pitch, although that’s not really an excuse.”
Pompey will look to restore some festive cheer when they take on AFC Wimbledon at Fratton Park on Boxing Day.
Thompson said: “The run has come to an end, but we’ve got three games in the space of just a few days coming up.
“We have to make sure we can bounce back quickly with them coming so thick and fast and that’s what we’ll be working hard to do.”