'Unbelievable' Pompey win was a unique experience for 'buzzing' Horsfall

"We went in at half-time and everyone was saying 'it's 0-0, it's 0-0' and I'm just thinking 'mate, it's not!'."
Fraser Horsfall wheels away in delight after scoring his second Cobblers goal.Fraser Horsfall wheels away in delight after scoring his second Cobblers goal.
Fraser Horsfall wheels away in delight after scoring his second Cobblers goal.

Cobblers 'unbelievable' 4-1 hammering of promotion-chasing Portsmouth on Saturday was nothing like Fraser Horsfall has ever experienced before.

Four goals in 23 astonishing first-half minutes effectively killed the contest there and then and set Town well on their way to back-to-back victories for the first time all season.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ryan Watson's quickfire double got the ball rolling before Horsfall scored his second goal for the Cobblers and then Sam Hoskins - or Ryan Edmondson, depending on your viewpoint - completed a surreal first-half at the PTS Academy Stadium.

"It's an unbelievable win - all the lads are buzzing," said Horsfall. "I've never been involved in anything like that first-half to be honest, I thought we were unbelievable.

"I think we're getting more confident every week and in the first-half the shackles were off and we just ran riot really. That gave us a good base to build on in the second-half.

"We went in at half-time and everyone was saying 'it's 0-0, it's 0-0' and I'm just thinking 'mate, it's not!'. But we knew the first 15 minutes of the second-half would be important.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"It was difficult and they were always going to come out and look to get back into the game but I thought we defended really well as a team. The lads had to dig in a bit but I'm just glad to get three points - it's a great win for us."

There had been little between the teams until the 20th minute when Mickel Miller was fouled just outside the box and Watson curled a wonderful free-kick into the top corner.

Town's form man had a second three minutes later and Horsfall's header made it 3-0 before both Hoskins and Edmondson tried to claim the fourth.

Horsfall added: "As soon as we got the free-kick, you just thought Ryan had to be on it because everything he's touching at the moment is going in! He's been on fire but everyone put a shift in and I thought we were unbelievable.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"I'm always looking to score goals at corners and I know I've needed to get more goals this season so it was a good feeling to get another goal.

"I think Ryan might be claiming the fourth one and there might be a few arguments in the changing room, but it was an unbelievable effort by Sammy so we'll have to look at it back to see who scored it."

Horsfall also praised the impact of Jon Brady on Town's recent upturn in form, adding: "It's been brilliant with the gaffer. During the week, we work on the opposition and we work on ourselves and I think you could see that on the pitch, especially in the first-half.

"Everyone is gelling and there's loads of freedom and it's coming off for us. We're all working for each other. It's not like that hasn't happened all season but the new manager coming in has given everyone a lift and it's like a fresh start - you can definitely see that on the pitch."

Related topics: