Good evening

It took a lot of guts in the first half against Portsmouth this afternoon because they knocked the ball around quite well; they were sharp and I remember them drawing 0-0 with Liverpool last weekend.

They are good players and keep possession well and in that heat out on the pitch it was a bit of a run around for our players.

But they stuck at it and in the second half they played higher up the field, got a little bit closer, played some more forward passes and we tried to turn the game around tactically by trying to get in behind Portsmouth's players quicker and unsettle them.

That is what we did and we created six good chances, their goalkeeper made some brilliant saves - perhaps we could have had a little bit better finishing but the effort, the energy, power and pace was there in the second half and they responded magnificently.

It was nice that our supporters appreciated that; we could have just waited around and hung about at 2-1 and let it all be but I don't really like that.

If we are going to lose then I prefer to have a go and put more people up front and play with three at the back, hit some diagonal passes to our big fellas, get crosses in and try to get forward.

I also know about the abuse Mark de Vries has taken in the past, rightly or wrongly, but he's worked hard through the summer on his fitness, worked very hard with me in pre-season, he's been an excellent professional and as I said earlier, supporters don't mind if players have a go.

Mark has now got some confidence, he's had a kick up the backside from me and he's had to work harder than he ever has in his life but I said to him that he'd get the benefits in the long term and if he continues what he's doing then he's got a chance of being an asset to me, to himself and of course the fans.

On the injury front, Gareth McAuley has had about six stitches in his calf but that's nothing and he'll soon shake that off while Joe Mattock has got a hip problem and we'll have to wait and see about that one.

It's always nice for me to go back to Cambridge where I spent three years at university so I am looking forward to going back there on Monday night.

All the players who weren't involved today will go there and play. It will be a competitive game for those players that need that little bit extra and they'll continue the work that they have been doing.

We'll now go away and review this afternoon's game and get in early on Monday and review the video before working with the senior players, as we build up to Saturday's game against Blackpool.

Take Care

Martin