It would have made the long journey back home in treacherous conditions even more torturous.
There were fewer than 30 minutes remaining when Pompey’s League One contest at Oldham appeared to be in doubt.
Referee Sebastian Stockbridge stopped play with the heavy snow starting to cover the white lines marked on the pitch.
The visitors were two goals ahead at that point – courtesy of Brett Pitman’s brace – meaning there was only one side pleading for an abandonment.
But thankfully the contest was able to go reach a conclusion, much to the relief of Kenny Jackett and his troops.
The Blues boss said: “The referee was okay with the playing surface, but the visibility of the lines was something he was questioning.
“We all waited and everyone was arguing for 5-10 minutes, although the sun then came out and we were able to continue.
"Surprisingly, all the shovels seemed to suddenly disappear!"
“Obviously Oldham wanted the game off, while we wanted to keep playing because of the scoreline at the time.
“I’m sure the referee saw the balance of the two arguments and he just wanted somebody to come on and clear the lines.
“There was perhaps a reluctance from the groundsman to do that because it might have damaged his pitch.
“Surprisingly, all the shovels seemed to suddenly disappear! But we got through that and thankfully the weather cleared up a bit.”
Pompey were well worth their three-point haul, while Jackett was particularly pleased to see Oldham shut out at the other end.
He said: “They were tough conditions for everyone to play in, but the players adapted to it well.
“It was our first clean sheet since the middle of December. It was hard-earned and thoroughly deserved. That’s the base for playing good football and also for confidence.
“Brett scored two fantastic goals in the first half and we could have added to that in the second because Jamal hit the post and Kal was also unlucky.
“He didn’t look favourite for the first one and it was a great header. Then we had tried to put pressure on their goalkeeper and that paid dividends.”