Portsmouth 0 Gillingham 0 - Neil Allen's verdict: Point not good enough for banal Blues after another tedious display

With cold-eyed implementation, they strangled the life out of Fratton Park proceedings, an agonising drawn-out demise as self-preservation seized control.

If Saturday’s game was to sink into depths of icy darkness, the callous Gills were intent on dragging Pompey down with them. There should be no survivors.

Certainly many spectators bailed before the bitter end, admittedly gasping for pints rather than air, nonetheless the suffocating climate could be swallowed no longer.

Even referee Graham Salisbury elected to throw in the towel rather than muster the energy to enforce new stipulations that substituted players must depart by the closest touchline.

Another Gillingham time-wasting stunt to smother the spirit of a home support growing ever demoralised at the excruciating footballing fare served up.

Yet focus should not be trained on the visitors’ stifling gameplan – instead Pompey’s own deficiencies must be concentrated upon.

For all the haranguing of match officials emanating from the away bench, the validity of the subsequent goalless draw is not the Gills’ issue. They achieved their goal.

Rather, the Blues must analyse their own inability to overcome such meticulously-placed obstacles.

After all, this side has been assembled to earn promotion and, on Saturday, possessed the benefits of home advantage – yet failed to outwit Evans and Co.

The first half was encouraging enough, the bulk of the Blues’ goal-scoring opportunities arose during a period overwhelmingly one-sided.