Portsmouth and QPR remain locked in the First Division relegation battle after a nervous encounter at Fratton Park.

Pompey made a blistering start with a goal inside 90 seconds but were unable to make the best of it as brave Rangers mounted a stirring second-half comeback.

Rangers fell behind when Lee Sharpe swung in a corner from the right and Lee Bradbury bundled in at the far post.

Disorganised Rangers showed signs of conceding many more with Bradbury having a volley blocked near the line by Chris Plummer and a long-range effort from Carl Tiler squeezing through the defence and going a foot wide.

But the best chance fell to Lee Mills, who was left with a free header from 15 yards but could only direct his effort straight at goalkeeper Lee Harper.

Then Jason Crowe raced clear only for Harper to block his shot from six yards.

At last QPR began to rally and they had a goal disallowed for offside in the 25th minute but only after the referee, who had given the goal, was overruled by his assistant.

A bad back pass by Kevin Harper let in Matthew Rose and when Peter Crouch headed goalwards Andy Thomson bundled over the line. But the goal was ruled out, apparently for offside against Crouch.

Thomson headed over the bar from six yards after good work by Ian Baraclough and the second half belonged to the visitors.

They deservedly pulled level in the 55th minute when a snapshot from Liam Knight was pushed away by goalkeeper Aaron Flahavan but only as far as Thomson, who scored from the rebound.

Both sides made substitutions in an effort to pick up the two extra points but it was Rangers who came closest to doing so in the 65th minute when a long-range effort from substitute Stuart Wardley flew narrowly wide.

Anxious Portsmouth bothered Harper only in the last two minutes when shots from Sharpe and Scott Hiley were held comfortably by the Rangers goalkeeper.

Teams

Portsmouth: Flahavan, Crowe, Tiler, Hiley, Vincent, Harper, Panopoulos (Nightingale 81), Sharpe, Lovell (O'Neil 64), Mills, Bradbury.

Subs Not Used: Tardif, Waterman, Miglioranzi.

Booked: Bradbury, Hiley.

Goals: Bradbury 2.

QPR: Harper, Bignot, Ready, Plummer, Baraclough (Darlington 68), Rose (Wardley 59), Knight, Peacock, Bruce, Thomson, Crouch.

Subs Not Used: Bull, Ngonge, Kulcsar.

Booked: Rose, Ready, Baraclough.

Goals: Thomson 56.

Att: 13,426

Ref: S Tomlin (Lewes).