Tom Naylor: win against Barnsley was Portsmouth's best display of season - and we need more of it to win promotion

And the Blues skipper has challenged his team-mates to carry that brilliance into their League One promotion bid – starting at Lincoln.

Kenny Jackett’s men conjured up their best performance of the season to defeat Championship Barnsley 4-2 in the FA Cup on Saturday.

Now they head to Lincoln as attention tonight returns to escaping from League One.

Pompey sit eighth, seven points off leaders Ipswich with two games in hand, enjoying an outstanding run of two defeats in 21 matches.

However, nothing has matched that impressive level of display demonstrated against the Tykes.

And Naylor, who has 85 Blues appearances, wants them to make it a regular occurrence to drive the promotion bid.

He said: ‘Against Barnsley we were brilliant from the first minute to the last.

‘It is the best we have played all season, the commitment was there throughout, we passed it, got it out wide, put crosses into the box and the goals were good too.

‘We took them to the sword. We just wanted to go out there and show the fans this is what we want to do – and it was a great feeling coming off that pitch knowing we had battered Barnsley.

‘In the FA Cup fourth round, is there pressure? Maybe not. I know our fans are always behind and we thought we’d go out and carve them open.

‘Everyone was buzzing after the game thinking “Do you know what, we really played well in that game today”.

‘Maybe the pressure wasn’t on us, as it is in the league, but as I said to the lads at the end of the game, let’s take that into every game.’

Pompey head to Sincil Bank seeking a seventh straight victory in all competitions – and buoyed by their latest win.

Naylor added: ‘The scoreline flattered Barnsley.

‘I was right behind their first goal, it moved all over the place. It was going straight to Bassy and then moved at the last minute.

‘The second one is a good save and Chappers tapped it in from close range.’