Andrew Moon column: Pompey face challenges after 'surprise' Cowley sacking

Portsmouth sacked head coach Danny Cowley after nine league games without victory

Portsmouth have sacked manager Danny Cowley 24 hours after his side's latest defeat to Charlton in League One.

BBC Radio Solent Sport's Andrew Moon assesses the mood amongst supporters and whether Pompey have the required quality to make the play-offs.

In more than a decade covering Portsmouth Football Club I have never seen Fratton Park like it was on New Year's Day.

There have been tough times, terrible runs and unpopular managers but never have a notable number of fans chanted for the boss to be sacked.

There were plenty frustrated with previous manager Kenny Jackett and some tough away days for him but never did the atmosphere in PO4 turn quite as toxic as it did in the defeat to Charlton.

And yet when I got the text on Monday night to say that Danny Cowley was departing I was surprised - and so were many of the players - with the announcement.

Pompey's form has been poor for some time but owner Michael Eisner has made it clear he wants to give managers time, and stuck with Kenny Jackett far longer than some supporters wanted.

It was going to be tough for Cowley to turn it around but he hadn't given up hope, and declares himself a fighter.

Some supporters on social media suggest he'd "lost the dressing room" - that's one of those football cliches which is usually false.

It's pretty rare for players to down tools to get a manager sacked and that was certainly not the case at Portsmouth.

However, figuring exactly what has gone wrong is difficult.

'No clear explanation' for struggles

Portsmouth took 21 points from their opening nine matches in League One but they've taken only 10 from the subsequent 13.

Automatic promotion form to relegation form.

Injuries have been a source of frustration for Cowley but the drop-off cannot be solely blamed on the absentees.

Conceding goals from set-pieces has been an issue but not the only one - scoring and chance creation have dried up.

No-one seems to have a clear explanation, I've watched every match and am still scratching my head.

Regular observers and those inside the dressing room believe this is a squad capable of finishing in the top six - they now have 24 games to show if that's true.

Seventy-five points is usually enough to make the League One play-offs and Pompey would need a storming second half of the season to reach that mark.

Lack of 'special victories'

Some anger from fans on social media is aimed at the owners.

It's nearly six years since Eisner completed his takeover, and investment in Fratton Park and other areas of the club has been notable and much-needed.

The problem is being a football fan is a lot about emotion.

We all remember how special victories and promotions made us feel and there weren't many of those moments in his tenure.

Buying the freehold of the training ground, for example, was very sensible business and important for the club long-term, but will never give those positive emotions that on the pitch success can.

Pompey face big challenge after departure of 'hard-working' Cowley

Through this tough run there can be no questioning Cowley's commitment.

He is a workaholic who gave absolutely everything to try to make Portsmouth successful, and I did at times wonder how often he got to see his family.

Despite working all hours of the day he always had time for people.

Comfortable chatting to supporters and attending community events, those who interacted with him felt his warmth.

He was a pleasure to deal with for the media.

There is a bit of snobbishness towards him in football, referring to him and his brother as "the PE teachers", which always felt unfair - their career was successful at every club before Portsmouth.

You suspect they'll be successful again and it underlines just how tough getting Pompey out of League One has become.

You can hear every Pompey match live on BBC Radio Solent with Andy Moon and former Blues striker and manager Guy Whittingham.

• Why was Danny Cowley sacked? Portsmouth chief executive Andrew Cullen explains here

• Click here to listen to Portsmouth fans react to Danny Cowley's dismissal

• Listen to Danny Cowley's last interview as Pompey boss following Charlton defeat, here