Norwegian striker seals win on return to South Coast

PORTSMOUTH should know how to handle foreign invasions by now.

But struggling Pompey were powerless to prevent viking raider Egil Ostenstad from disappearing with the loot on his return to his adopted South coast.

The Norwegian international was booed and jeered by the home fans because of his previous allegiance to arch rivals Southampton.

But he slammed those taunts firmly down their throats with a brilliant piece of instinctive finishing to take Rovers' tally to six points from a hectic festive programme.

Yet Ostenstad's performance was all the more remarkable considering he was asked to play as a lone ranger due to injuries to Nathan Blake and Ashley Ward.

And with Matt Jansen still not 100 per cent yet, manager Tony Parkes had little option but to field the Norwegian up front alone with five across the middle.

Ostenstad didn't need a companion, though, as his stooping header pushed Rovers up to seventh in the First Division table.

And his match-winning effort was all the sweeter for silencing the boo-boys.

"Obviously, they wouldn't have given me the stick if I'd have played very badly down here, so I don't mind it," said Ostenstad.

"But it was even nicer to score in front of them. "Damien whipped it in, I just managed to get my head in front of the defenders, I got a little flick on it and that was enough."

Yet despite the fact that Ostenstad's goal ensured the Ewood club finished the century on a winning note, Rovers sixth league victory since Parkes took over was more about graft than guile.

With a host of key players missing, the visitors had to abandon their highly successful 4-4-2 formation in order to compensate for their lack of striking options.

And the result was a disjointed performance which lacked the style and panache of previous victories under Parkes.

But for all the home side's late pressure as the Rovers defence creaked under an aerial assault led by man-muntain Darren Moore, Christian Dailly and Co defiantly stood their ground.

And the delight on everyone's faces at the final whistle perfectly summed up the new togetherness in Parkes' squad.

Nobody epitomised that more than Jason McAteer, Rovers' driving force in the centre of midfield, despite the fact he had been stretchered off with a badly gashed thigh less than a week before.

His tenacity allowed the visitors to settle quickly into their stride during the opening exchanges.

Ostenstad was in the thick of the action early on, firing straight at keeper Aaron Flahavan from an acute angle on the left. Then Callum Davidson nearly played him in again following a mazy 30 yard run but his final ball was just too strong.

The Scot did, however, slice open the Pompey defence a couple of minutes later with a killer pass which sent Duff scampering away but his centre was just scrambled clear as McAteer waited to pounce.

Yet, just as Rovers looked set to slip into top gear, they were stunned by a Pompey strike totally out of the blue in the 14th minute.

Moore outjumped the defence to nod down Jimmy Igoe's left-wing corner and wily predator Steve Claridge bundled the ball home from close range.

Rovers were nearly caught napping by Claridge again a minute later but he headed straight at Kelly from a Lee Bradbury cross.

And had the former Leicester man been more alert, he would have capitalised on another moment of hesitancy at the back when Dailly totally misread Andy Awford's cross on the edge of the six yard box.

But it wasn't long before the Rovers defender made amends, dragging his side level in the 32nd minute.

Damien Johnson's corner hung in the wind, Dailly challenged Moore for the header, and when the ball dropped, the Scot lashed home a shot from 10 yards.

Suddenly, it was Rovers who had a spring in their step and they struck another body blow a minute before the break. Duff outfoxed two defenders on the left to create a yard of space for himself and his drilled cross was met by Ostenstad with a stooping near post header which flew in off the bar.

Pompey came out fighting in the second half as Guy Whittingham's acrobatics forced Kelly into action.

However, a quick counter from Rovers nearly produced a second for Ostenstad but the Norwegian fired into the side netting after a neat build up involving Duff and McAteer.

Rovers were rocked by an injury to Kelly on the hour mark, though, when the Republic of Ireland international jumped with Moore for a Martin Phillips cross and landed awkwardly.

After a five minute delay, Alan Fettis took over and he was forced to endure a rocky last half hour.

Moore just failed to connect with an Igoe free kick before an Awford rasper flew just wide.

But Pompey's best chance of the match fell to Claridge with seven minutes remaining.

Igoe's pinpoint centre picked him out at the far post but, somehow, he volleyed wide from eight yards.

That was a let off.

Rovers thought they'd eased the pressure when Pompey skipper Adrian Whitbread deflected a McAteer free kick past his own keeper in the dying seconds but Ostenstad was penalised for a foul.

It didn't matter, though, as Parkes' heroes survived six minutes of injury time to kick start the New Year celebrations with a bang.

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