"Trust me, in a short space of time, we'll be ahead of Portsmouth," Joey Barton said after Bristol Rovers were beaten at Portsmouth in August. "They're playing 4-4-2, the Cowleys, sound. It doesn't take you to where you need to get to in my opinion.
"They beat us fair and square today and we'll see them down the track."
The Gas manager faced ridicule from Pompey fans in the wake of that 3-1 defeat, but while he will take no satisfaction in Danny Cowley and his brother and assistant Nicky being sacked on Monday, it is hard to argue that those bold claims made pitchside on the south coast don't look prophetic now.
