Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce hailed his side's fighting spirit after they recovered from a ``dire'' first half to claim three priceless points at Ewood Park with a 3-1 win over Portsmouth.

Rovers were booed off at the break after Jamie O'Hara's long-range opener put Pompey in front but, after ringing the changes at the break, Allardyce saw his side coast home.

Allardyce said: "I don't normally get so radical at half-time but it was our worst first-half performance this season and the fans rightly showed their displeasure."

He continued: "It boiled down to the players not coping with Pompey's system so we took our wide men off and matched it. It worked tremendously well and it got us another important victory."

Allardyce put the dismal first half fare down to nerves as his side had the chance of clawing their way out of the bottom three at the expense of their opponents.

He added: "The players seemed to let the nerves get to them a little bit but they overcame their nerves and got a good result, so full marks to them in the end.

"We showed our quality at set pieces and with the third goal. We like to do it the hard way. It was a sloppy goal we conceded but we've recovered from it well."