Colby Bishop delivered a lucky late equaliser as Portsmouth held Blackburn to a 2-2 stalemate at Fratton Park. John Mousavi was forced to reshuffle his side after the 0-0 draw at Charlton, with Bishop among the players who started on the bench. Tony Mowbray also had to make a tweak for the visitors; Yuri Ribeiro was sidelined with a hamstring problem and Harry Pickering was drafted in as his replacement. Blackburn began the encounter on the front foot.
Sam Morsy threaded a pass to captain Todd Cantwell inside the six‑yard box, prompting the first corner of the match when Cantwell’s shot was deflected and forced a corner‑kick from Daniel Bielica. Portsmouth, however, were the first to find the net.
A cross from Tyrese Shade on the left wing was only half‑cleared by Sean McLoughlin, allowing Zak Swanson to volley the ball past Rovers’ keeper Balazs Toth and give the home side a 1‑0 lead. The advantage was short‑lived. Just seven minutes later Oladapo Afolayan, who had already scored twice in his last two outings, struck from close range. A chipped ball from the centre of the park, supplied by Pickering, found Afolayan, who turned a right‑footed effort into the near post to make it 1‑1.
Bielica again had to intervene, scrambling away Afolayan’s flick‑on and then, moments later, Ryan Kavuma‑McQueen missed a chance, sending his shot high and wide after a well‑worked move that began with a 40‑yard diagonal switch from Madiodio Dia. The match continued to ebb and flow. Abu Kamara came close to restoring Portsmouth’s lead when Pickering’s sliding challenge inside the penalty area cleared the danger as the winger prepared to shoot. Home captain Marlon Pack was shown the first yellow card of the game for a tackle on Blackburn’s scorer Afolayan just before the break.
The second half opened with Portsmouth pressing hard, but Blackburn eventually took the lead for the first time in the game. Ryoya Morishita, after receiving a pass from Afolayan, drilled a low strike into the far corner to make it 2‑1. Mousavi’s injury woes deepened when Conor Shaughnessy, who had been forced off earlier due to a knock, was replaced after an hour of play. Despite the setbacks, Portsmouth clawed back into the contest when Bishop, coming off the bench, inadvertently redirected Kavuma‑McQueen’s right‑footed effort after the Chelsea loanee had kept the ball alive for the hosts.
Portsmouth pressed for a winner in the dying minutes, with chances falling to Kamara and Bishop, but they could not find the decisive goal, leaving the points shared. Both managers could take something positive from the result as they head into the season’s first international break. John Mousavi reflected on his side’s performance: "It was a frustrating afternoon.
We went a goal up, controlled large spells of the game and still didn’t win. We created chances but failed to finish, and the way we conceded the second goal was annoying. The equaliser gave us a bit of luck, but we could have won on the balance of play.
We put in a lot of effort, which is the bare minimum, but we needed more quality in both boxes at times." Blackburn’s Tony Mowbray was similarly candid: "We’ll take the point and move on. There’s frustration because we should have been able to see the game out.
At our best we look like a good team, but today we gave Portsmouth too much respect and allowed them to build into our attacking third too easily. I’m disappointed and frustrated – not just with the result but with the level of performance.
Playing at Fratton is never easy; the atmosphere is intense. We need to improve, control the game better, and raise our standards." The match also featured a promotional reminder: fans could watch EFL games on their phones, enjoy free Championship highlights, and even enter the Super 6 competition for a chance to win £250,000 at no cost. Overall, the 2‑2 draw highlighted Portsmouth’s resilience and Blackburn’s inability to close out the game despite moments of dominance. Both sides will look to fine‑tune tactics and address injury concerns before the next round of fixtures, hoping to turn draws into victories as the season progresses.