Pompey go into their Christmas and New Year games just three points off the summit of League after another come-from-behind away win.

Conor Chaplin was the late goal hero as Pompey won 2-1 at Northampton afte Gareth Evans had cancelled out Ryan Creswell's opener.

It was Pompey's sixth away win, although their first for two months, and leaves them right on the tails of top three Plymouth, Northampton and Oxford.

As expected Matt Clarke came into the defence for the injured Christian Burgess, but otherwise manager Paul Cook kept faith with the players who had beaten Hartlepool last week.

Pompey's best early chances fell to Evans, but he couldn't capitalise after first Caolan Lavery and then Marc McNulty played him into potential goalscoring positions.

Northampton took the lead on 17 minutes with an all-too-simple goal - Cresswell heading in Joel Byrom's corner at the far post.

Lavery and McNulty were causing the Cobblers some wobbly moments but it was Evans who gave Pompey a deserved equaliser in the 33rd minute.

McNulty beat two defenders and crossed for Evans to head in, with the home side and their fans complaints that he was offside falling on deaf ears.

Cresswell for the hosts and Lavery and McNulty for the Blues all had chances for the game's next goal before the break but it remained 1-1.

Kyle Bennett came to the fore in the early stages of the second half but was thwarted once by the keeper and once by a defender's block.

It was all Pompey for a while and Northampton brought on ex-Fratton player of the year Ricky Holmes to try to change things.

Cook felt there was another goal in Pompey and brought on Adam McGurk, Ben Tollitt and Chaplin in an effort to find it - and the changes did the trick.

Just four minutes remained when Tollitt led a Pompey break and fired in a shot that keeper Adam Smith could only parry into the path of Chaplin, who slotted in from a couple of yards out.

Pompey have been known to blow 2-1 leads on the road this season and hearts were in mouths when Dominic Calvert-Lewin rattled the crossbar with a header. But that was the final scare as the Blues held on for a memorable result.

Assistant boss Leam Richardson told The News: 'We have come to Northampton, who are a very good team, and it’s been a good game. We felt that we got in the ascendancy in the second half but they always carried a threat. The lads showed a lot of belief after going behind and we’re really pleased to get the win.'

Pompey: Murphy; Davies, Webster, Clarke, Stevens; Hollands, Doyle (c); Evans, McNulty (McGurk 80), Bennett (Tollitt 76); Lavery (Chaplin 85). Subs not used: Bass, Haunstrup, Barton, Close

Referee: Fred Graham

Attendance: 5,859 (938 Pompey fans)

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