John Mousinho was pleased to see the fruits of a hard week of work for the Pompey squad on the training ground.
A friendly at their Copnor Road base against League Two outfit Crawley finished 9-1 in the home side’s favour.
Kusini Yengi grabbed a hat-trick in his first appearance for the club, while Anthony Scully added a brace and there were goals for Zak Swanson, Colby Bishop, Tom Lowery and Christian Saydee.
It is a result that will certainly claim headlines, but Mousinho was simply pleased to see his side continue their march towards full fitness ahead of the League One opener.
The Blues boss said: “It was a really good exercise for the lads in terms of getting minutes into them, with two strong 11s in each half.
“Most of the boys got an hour and we’re pleased from a fitness perspective, as well as being able to see some of the bits we’ve been working on come to fruition during the game.
"He looks an exciting prospect and it’s early doors for him, but it’s a pretty good start to his career with us."
“We didn’t want a midweek match so we could have a full week of training and it sets us up quite nicely ahead of facing AFC Wimbledon and Bristol City.
“They all look a lot sharper then we did at this time last Saturday, although those non-league games were useful for us.
“Everybody is back to full fitness now, except for Joe Rafferty, who is with the full training group and if all goes well, will feature on Tuesday night.
“Kusini got 45 minutes for us and we’ve managed him carefully after a hectic few weeks flying over from Australia and getting settled in down in Portsmouth.
“He looks an exciting prospect and it’s early doors for him, but it’s a pretty good start to his career with us. We’re pleased with his finishing and he also had one cleared off the line.
“Seeing all three of our centre-forwards scoring gives you a lot to think about, but it’s certainly a nice problem to have.”