It was a fine finish that arrowed into the top corner to ensure Pompey could celebrate all three points against Scunthorpe.
But Jamal Lowe was frustrated that he failed to claim the matchball after helping his side to a 2-0 victory at a windy Fratton Park.
The winger added to Omar Bogle’s opener to take his personally tally for the season to 13 goals – meaning he is the club’s outright top scorer.
And while Lowe was happy to play a part in improving the Blues’ promotion hopes, he was left wondering what might have been.
He said: “I had about 18 chances and could have scored more than I did, but you just have to keep going and thankfully I got there in the end.
“It was a great opportunity for me to get a hat-trick, which is something I’ve never achieved for Pompey.
“On another day that might have been the case, but one was enough to get the job done and that’s the most important thing.
"It was a great opportunity for me to get a hat-trick, which is something I’ve never achieved for Pompey."
“There was either a ricochet, the keeper saved it or I was offside and it was one of those days when I had to keep going.
“At first I was looking to see if I could slide someone in and then I decided to go for it myself. It was nice to see it go in.
“I’m pleased with my total for the season so far, although the number could – and probably should – be higher.
“It’s already way more than I got in the whole of the previous campaign, but there will always be space for even more.”
Pompey dominated for much of the contest and the result takes them to within four points of Barnsley in second position.
Lowe said: “We’re in a good place at the moment and know what we need to do. Hopefully we can carry this form into next week.
“It was a hard game and the wind didn’t help either team – it was hard to read where the ball was going at times.
“Some of the matches won’t be pretty – especially when the weather’s bad – but we played some good football at times and can be proud of what we did.”