Is Blackburn Rovers v Portsmouth on TV? Why is Championship showdown at 12.30pm? Tickets and how to watch contest

Why does Blackburn Rovers v Pompey kick-off 12.30pm?

Pompey make the long-trip north to Lancashire on Saturday, with a win for either side helping them take a huge step closer to ensuring survival.

There’ll be a number of early alarms on the south coast as the Fratton faithful brace for a 500-plus mile round trip from Ewood Park, which gets underway at 12.30pm.

That is because of Sky Sports’ decision to televise the crucial relegation showdown live on their Main Event and Football channels as the race for safety heats up in the remaining weeks of the season.

Of course, the blackout on English football for 3pm kick-offs prevents those games to be broadcast live in this country.

Can I get tickets?

Pompey were allocated a staggering 4,300 tickets in the lower stand of the Darwen End at Ewood Park in February.

At the time of writing, there are still tickets on sale for supporters who are looking to make the trip to Lancashire, with tickets now available on general sale.

These will come off sale at 10am on Friday morning, with the number sold currently disclosed.

Will it be on TV and can I stream it?

There is a full round-up of Championship football, which will be shown live throughout the weekend, with Saturday’s crucial survival showdown taking centre stage.

Supporters who aren’t making the journey to Ewood Park will be able to watch the action unfold on Sky Sports.

There will be in-depth build-up from studio guests, who will be providing analysis before kick-off, at half-time and after the full-time whistle.

Coverage begins from 11am on the Sky Sports Football channel, with the fixture also available to watch on the Sky Sports Main Event channel.

Alternatively, a NOW TV membership can be purchased, with day passes to stream the match - as well as Sky Sports’ 12 other channels - available for £14.99.

Supporters can also follow every Pompey game live on Pompey+, the club’s official streaming platform.

UK-based fans can purchase an audio match pass for full live commentary. Overseas supporters can buy a video match pass to watch the game live.

Simply visit: www.portsmouthfc.co.uk/videos/subscriptions and select Match Passes - options will automatically appear based on your location.

The News will, as usual, be providing extensive online coverage, with team news, live blog, match report, player ratings as well as player and manager reaction stories.

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Team news

Pompey still have a lengthy injury list with at least 11 members of the squad missing the all-important fixture in the north west.

Franco Umeh (hamstring), Mark Kosznovszky (knee), Josh Murphy (foot) and Aji Alese (quad) will sit out the remainder of the season, while it remains to be seen whether Josh Knight (back) and Florian Bianchini (knee) will feature in the final two months of the campaign.

The game will come too soon for John Swift (hamstring) and Makenzie Kirk (achilles), who are both expected to return against Swansea City next week, while Andre Dozzell (ankle) and Keshi Anderson (hamstring) are pencilled in to complete their comeback after the international break. Thomas Waddingham (quad) is also sidelined.

There is one piece of positive injury news, with Conor Shaughnessy expected to return to the fold this weekend.

The centre-back has missed the Blues’ previous 10 matches with a quad issue sustained during the 1-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday in January.

One-time Pompey loanee Hayden Carter is a huge doubt to face his former side after suffering a hamstring injury against Derby County last week, while Scott Wharton and Sidnei Tavares are to be assessed.

Sondre Tondass, Todd Cantwell, Ryan Hedges, Lewis Millar, Matty Litherland, Jake Garrett and Aynsley Pears will miss out.

Referee

The EFL have announced Tom Neild will be the man in the middle for the huge contest at the bottom of the Championship standings. The 34-year-old will be assisted by Andrew Dallison, Carl Fitch-Jackson and fourth official Thomas Kirk.

Neild took charge of the Blues’ 3-2 defeat to Hull City in November and has officiated 17 Championship matches this term.

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