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| Portsmouth 1(1) - 5(2) Leeds United 3:00pm 23rd January 1999 FA Cup Round 4
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| A powerfully efficient display from David O'Leary's in-form Leeds demolished poor Portsmouth today. The proud south coast club are deep in crisis but had hoped to upset the FA Cup odds for the second time this season. But, despite a passionate full house at Fratton Park and a promising opening, Leeds' five star display was too much for Alan Ball's gallant Division One team. Goals from David Wetherall, Ian Harte, Harry Kewell, Bruno Ribeiro and Clyde Wijnhard sealed Pompey's fate. Now Ball's club face a harsh battle against bankruptcy and relegation for the rest of the season. The Pompey fans enjoyed their day, though, cheering rather than protesting for a change. Their FA Cup dream had burned brightly, if briefly, early in the tie against a Leeds team without five first-team regulars for one reason and another. Charged by the noisy 18,000 at Fratton and their third-round victory away at Premiership Nottingham Forest, the underdogs started confidently and took a ninth-minute lead through Luke Nightingale. Pompey were given a rapturous welcome from their supporters and responded in fine fashion with an impressive opening. Nightingale latched on to a Jeff Peron cross to drive the ball past England goalkeeper Nigel Martyn. Peron had danced his way skilfully down the left wing before pulling a low cross back from the byline. It fell behind striker Steve Claridge and the recovering Leeds defenders, but Nightingale had timed his run perfectly and finished coolly in a cluttered goalmouth. The celebrations, though, were short-lived, as The Yorkshire club took advantage of slack marking to equalise inside two minutes. Portsmouth may have been guilty of losing concentration after taking the lead, and when Ribeiro hurled the ball into the danger zone from the left wing no one had bothered to pick up defender Wetherall who accepted the chance to nod his team level. It was not long before the Pompey excitement was punctured further by a wonderful strike from Harte. Referee Gary Willard spotted an innocuous foul by Sammy Igoe on the edge of the Pompey area after the defence had partly cleared a corner, and Harte stepped up to blaze a superb free-kick beyond the despairing dive of veteran goalkeeper Alan Knight. The goal gave the Yorkshire side the initiative, and they never looked like relinquishing control of the tie from that moment. O'Leary recharged their batteries at half-time, and his team came out to complete a demolition job in the second half. Australian Harry Kewell chalked up the crucial third after a long period of Leeds pressure. Pompey failed to clear a corner, and Jonathon Woodgate forced a loose ball wide to Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink on the right. The Dutchman charged powerfully to the byline and chopped a low cross back which found a route through a crowded goalmouth to Kewell who made no mistake with a crisp finish. Portsmouth had run themselves into the ground and, despite the occasional hopeful flurry in front of goal, could not find a route back into the game. Ribeiro claimed the fourth when his long-range effort was deflected past Knight off Adrian Whitbread, and sub Wijnhard wrapped up the scoring with a fifth. Pompey refused to lie down, and only two top-class saves from Martyn prevented them from celebrating a late consolation. He clawed out a header from Greek defender Michalis Vlachos and dived full-length to his left to turn a Claridge shot round the post in the final minute.
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