Jones thought his side improved dramatically after the break
Town boss Nathan Jones had mixed emotions after his side’s 1-0 loss to Portsmouth at Fratton Park this afternoon.
The Hatters lacked a cutting edge in the first half, something the manager was angered by, but a strong second half showing gave the hosts something to think about, as Danny Hylton and Jonathan Smith both went very close for their side.
Jones’ team went behind on 31 minutes through Christian Burgess’ close range header and the Hatters weren’t able to muster a real chance until Hylton hit the crossbar with a classy chip early on in the second half.
The striker was at the heart of the Town’s next best move as he cut in from the right, dribbled past two defenders and crossed the ball into the Pompey six-yard box, but Smith couldn’t turn the effort towards goal.
Jones said: ”I thought we were poor first half, we lacked bravery. You know when you come here you have got to be brave. You don’t come here and try and sit back and contain anyone, we tried to win the game.
“We showed no bravery, a few didn’t turn up. They had no energy about them, the desire to affect the football game and in the first half we really lacked any kind of quality.
“Second half was a totally different affair and I thought we were excellent.
“We were on the front foot, we were positive. We had the best chances of the half, in terms of Danny hitting the bar and Jonathan Smith [having a chance]. We were much, much better in the second half.”