Portsmouth's dazzling opening 40-minute display was just what the doctor ordered - but a hiccup right on half-time eventually led to Steve Claridge's team catching an FA Cup cold.

Injuries and a flu epidemic had reduced Pompey's 40-strong playing squad to just six fit outfield players on Friday and the Fratton Park club were considering calling off this FA Cup third round clash.

But patched-up Pompey started with the injured quintet of Scott Hiley, Shaun Derry, Nigel Quashie, Jason Crowe and Luke Nightingale along with flu victims Darren Moore and Thomas Thogersen and for 40 minutes they completely blew the Merseysiders away.

Rovers boss John Aldridge later described the Pompey players as having made a "Lazarus style" recovery and intimated that the club may now land themselves in trouble after putting out a side which showed only four changes from their New Year's Day clash with Gillingham.

Although it wouldn't be difficult to point a fickle finger at Aldridge's side who appeared to resort to kicking their way out of trouble in the second half when referee Dermot Gallagher booked six of their players and red-carded Gareth Roberts.

It was worse than the worst Sunday morning parks football scenario as a Tranmere player would kick lumps out of a Pompey player until they were booked and then someone else would take over.

Yet quite how they lost this tie will continue to baffle Pompey and their fans for the rest of the week ahead. They completely bossed the possession, yet they only found the net once while Tranmere mustered just three efforts all afternoon - two were on target and the other hit a post.

You felt that there must have been something in Pompey's Lem-Sip as Claridge's ailing side attacked with pace and flair from the start, ripping apart a Tranmere team which has picked up only five points in 13 away games.

Everything looked rosier still when Portsmouth took the lead on eight minutes. Luke Nightingale blocked the attempted clearance of Rovers keeper John Achterberg but Lee Bradbury still had plenty to do as he deftly steered the ball inside the upright.

Although Nightingale hit the crossbar minutes later, Achterberg atoned his earlier error with a string of superb saves but Quashie should have added a second after 37 minutes. However, in rounding the keeper, he kicked the ball out of play.

How Pompey were made to pay for failing to secure the cushion of a second goal. Clint Hill provided the early warning when he headed against the upright on 43 minutes.

It went unheeded as 60 seconds later Sean Flynn swung in a left-wing cross and Steve Yates rose to bury his header back into the opposite corner of the net.

There was lots of huff and puff from Pompey after the break, but unlike the first half, little to trouble Achterberg in the Rovers goal and they fell to a classical sucker punch on 69 minutes when Andy Parkinson cut inside Crowe to sweep a left-footed shot beyond debutant keeper Chris Tardif.