Portsmouth 2-2 Blackburn Rovers: Match Report, Goals, Stats and Ratings

How the match unfolded

Zak Swanson  put Portsmouth ahead in the 4th minute. Blackburn Rovers levelled at 1-1 in the 11th minute through Oladapo Afolayan, set up by Harry Pickering. Blackburn Rovers turned it round: Ryoya Morishita made it 1-2 in the 56th minute, set up by Oladapo Afolayan. Portsmouth levelled at 2-2 in the 74th minute through Colby Bishop, set up by Ryan Kavuma-McQueen.

It was 1-1 at half-time.

The lead changed hands once.

The referee, J. Busby, showed 3 yellow cards: 2 to Portsmouth and 1 to Blackburn Rovers.

Portsmouth: J. Mousinho, 4-2-3-1 · Blackburn Rovers: T. Mowbray, 5-4-1.

Moneyball's prediction against the result

Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.

Why it went this way

On the day the expected goals were 0.88 for Portsmouth and 1.97 for Blackburn Rovers.

Portsmouth scored about 1.1 more than their chances were worth: clinical finishing, or a goalkeeper having a bad day.

Blackburn Rovers created the better chances, 1.97 xG to 0.88, and still did not win. On chances alone, the result could easily have gone the other way.

Portsmouth had 7 shots on target, Blackburn Rovers 5.

Blackburn Rovers's goalkeeper made 5 saves.

Portsmouth had 51% of the ball.

Where the two sides stood before this match

Portsmouth came into it with 12 Championship matches played, scoring 1.3 and conceding 1.3 a match, with 1.40 expected goals for and 1.20 against, and had won 42% of their matches.

Blackburn Rovers came into it with 12 Championship matches played, scoring 1.6 and conceding 1.3 a match, with 1.04 expected goals for and 1.79 against, and had won 42% of their matches.

Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers: the match in numbers

Team statistics from Sportmonks.

Player ratings and man of the match

Man of the match: Oladapo Afolayan (Blackburn Rovers), rated 8.2 by Sportmonks, with 1 goal, 1 assist.

Portsmouth

• Ryan Kavuma-McQueen 7.7 1 assist
• Zak Swanson 7.4
• Colby Bishop 7.1 1 goal
• Jayden Meghoma 6.8
• Abu Kamara 6.8

Blackburn Rovers

• Oladapo Afolayan 8.2 1 goal, 1 assist
• Ryoya Morishita 7.5 1 goal
• Todd Cantwell 7.2
• Balázs Tóth 7.0
• Harry Pickering 7.0 1 assist

The lowest-rated starter was Sean McLoughlin at 6.2. Ratings run from 0 to 10; around 7.0 is a solid match.

What comes next

• Portsmouth: Burnley vs Portsmouth Saturday 31 October 2026 · Championship
• Blackburn Rovers: Swansea City vs Blackburn Rovers Saturday 31 October 2026 · Championship

Each preview has Moneyball's estimate for the next match, published before kick-off and marked against the result afterwards, as this one is.

Questions about Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers

What was the score in Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers?

Portsmouth 2-2 Blackburn Rovers (half-time 1-1), Championship, Saturday 19 September 2026.

Who scored in Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers?

Zak Swanson  4', Oladapo Afolayan 11', Ryoya Morishita 56', Colby Bishop 74'.

Did Moneyball predict Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers correctly?

Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.

Who was man of the match in Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers?

Oladapo Afolayan, rated 8.2 by Sportmonks.

Who refereed Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers?

J. Busby.