Portsmouth move out of Championship drop zone after draw with Watford

Portsmouth moved out of the Championship relegation places after a 1-1 draw at Watford, whose hopes of regaining a play-off place at the other end of the table were thwarted.

Adrian Segecic put Portsmouth ahead in the 73rd minute but Watford levelled through substitute Mamadou Doumbia six minutes later.

The first chance was Portsmouth’s but new recruit Ebou Adams, making his full debut, saw his 20-yard shot blocked by a defender.

Millenic Alli, another fresh face at Fratton Park, was the next Pompey man to have a go from distance after Watford surrendered possession cheaply and the deflection of his shot began a series of corners that ended with Conor Chaplin hooking wide.

It took Watford 20 minutes to retaliate through a drive from Giorgi Chakvetadve, which was also deflected behind to begin a flurry of corners. Striker Luca Kjerrumgaard was off target with the hosts’ next opportunity four minutes later.

Portsmouth appealed in vain for handball from a corner that saw Jeremy Ngakia jump with arms raised beyond the back post before Othmane Maamma, played in on the right of the box by Chakvetadve, fired wastefully into the side-netting at the other end.

Watford captain Imran Louza tried his luck from range soon after but the Morocco midfielder’s drive was too high and the half ended with the Hornets giving the ball away in their own half again and Chaplin fizzing a shot wide.

Watford made two changes for the second period, with Mamadou Doumbia and Kevin Keben coming on. Portsmouth, hard hit by injuries, sent on fresh legs in Jordan Williams.

The second period plodded on although Alli was close to latching on to a back-pass that saw Watford goalkeeper Egil Selvik get there first.

Segecic cut in from the right to test Selvik from the edge of the box before Maamma was hurt and had to be helped off the pitch.

Watford upped their tempo but Kjerrumgaard saw a fierce drive diverted away by a defender and Marc Bola saw his low shot fly straight to goalkeeper Nicolas Schmid.

Segecic broke the deadlock in the 73rd minute when Chaplin received Alli’s pass in the box and swivelled to square the ball for the Australian to slot home his sixth goal of the season.

The lead lasted only six minutes however when Doumbia profited from an error by goalkeeper Schmid, who dropped Louza’s delivery into the box. That allowed Kjerrumgaard to poke the lose ball to the substitute who slotted past a couple of defenders.