Portsmouth claimed their first league win of the season as they emphatically beat 10-man Leicester 6-1.
Braces from Lawrence and Kitson help slay 10-man Leicester
Portsmouth claimed their first Championship win of the season to lift them off the bottom of the table as they emphatically defeated 10-man Leicester City 6-1 at Fratton Park.
Liam Lawrence opened the scoring from the penalty spot following a daft Michael Morrison handball before Miguel Vitor was dismissed when referee Keith Hill deemed he denied David Nugent a clear goalscoring opportunity.
And midfielder Lawrence, on loan from Stoke, fired in the resulting free-kick via the aid of a deflection to hand previously winless Pompey a 2-0 lead at the break.
The result was put beyond any doubt when Portsmouth scored twice in the space of two minutes, with Nugent and then Dave Kitson netting just prior to the hour mark.
Paulo Sousa's side, who beat their opponents 2-1 in the Carling Cup on Tuesday, netted a consolation through Steve Howard, but a second of the night for Kitson and a terrific goal by Michael Brown rubbed further salt in the Foxes' wounds.
Swimming
The South Coast club, who remain in administration and still cannot fill their substitutes' bench, have been swimming against the tide all season.
But a combination of Morrison's ridiculous handball and referee Hill's harsh decision to send off Portuguese defender Vitor put them on their way to a much-needed win.
Morrison gifted them the lead after just nine minutes when, for reasons best known to himself, he raised his arm as he jumped for Lawrence's corner.
Hill pointed to the spot and Lawrence stepped up to send Conrad Logan the wrong way.
Leicester tried to hit back immediately and had the ball in the net in the 17th minute, but Andy King was adjudged to be offside when he tucked Lloyd Dyer's pass away.
However, Pompey were dominating possession and Lawrence saw an angled shot tipped over by Logan, Brown fired narrowly wide and Aaron Mokoena sent a volley over.
And Leicester's evening got worse on the half-hour when Vitor was dismissed for felling Nugent on the edge of the area.
Dismissal
While it was a clear foul, their were plenty of other defenders in attendance and Vitor was stunned to see Hill produce the red card.
Lawrence rubbed salt in the wounds when he thumped the free-kick past Logan with the help a deflection off Bruno Berner.
Carl Dickinson almost scored a memorable goal just after the break with a 30-yard effort from the left touchline which caught Logan off his line but just shaved the crossbar.
But moments later Pompey did grab the third when Logan palmed Kitson's shot to the feet of Nugent.
The former Burnley striker's initial effort was blocked by Logan but he kept his head to slot in the rebound from a tight angle.
And straight from the restart Pompey were four up, Nugent winning the ball back and playing in Kitson to chip over Logan and into the net.
Howard bundled in a consolation from a goalmouth scramble, but some more generous defending allowed Kitson to tap in number five.
And Brown capped a memorable night with a stunning solo effort in the last minute as some of the gloom finally began to lift around Fratton Park.
