Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe were on target as Portsmouth saw off battling Stoke City in their Barclays Premier League match at Fratton Park.
Crouch followed up his crucial UEFA Cup goals against Guimaraes with a spectacular opener but it was left to Defoe to net the winner after former Pompey striker Ricardo Fuller equalised.
Crouch and Defoe now have 11 goals between them this season since Pompey set up their £18.5m partnership.
And the 6ft 7ins former Liverpool forward, who notched two in midweek to rescue Portsmouth's UEFA Cup hopes in Portugal, took them into double figures with a stunning overhead kick from Defoe's pass in the 25th minute.
Yet in Pompey's seventh game in 22 days - manager Harry Redknapp made just two changes from the side that knocked out Guimaraes - they were forced into a fierce battle by Stoke.
But after Fuller bundled home an equaliser three minutes into the second half, Defoe cracked the winner three minutes later, having already hit a post.
All Pompey's early dominance pointed to a comfortable win as winger Armand Traore terrorised Stoke's right flank with a series of raids that produced near misses by Papa Bouba Diop and Defoe.
Yet the home side suddenly began to struggle against Rory Delap's long throws and Fuller's committed approach.
low drive
Ex-Pompey chief Tony Pulis must have cursed when Dave Kitson missed a 17th-minute sitter, clipping his shot wide from Delap's diagonal pass with only David James to beat.
Then Seyi Olofinjana was booked for a foul on Sean Davis, who had to go off briefly for a treatment to his lower back and it signalled a Pompey revival.
Davis had just returned by the time the hitherto subdued Defoe chipped a lovely ball across the area and Crouch notched his fourth goal in three matches with a stunning volley on the turn.
Pumped-up Pompey pressed again and Defoe's fierce low drive was parried by Steve Simonsen before Diop blasted wide on the half-hour.
Stoke could have had a penalty, however, when four minutes later, Fuller chased a Michael Tonge pass through the centre and tried to round James before going down in a heap.
It looked like referee Andre Marriner had awarded a spot-kick as James raced to him with arms spread wide but the official had pointed for a goal-kick. He then felt obliged to explain the decision to Fuller, who seemed convinced he had been tripped.
Stoke had another penalty shout when Sol Campbell collapsed on top of Fuller soon afterwards but then Defoe was irate after Olofinjana appeared to clip his heels inside the area at the other end. Again the referee was unimpressed.
aerial bombardment
Defoe kept plugging away and when he crossed to the near post from the right, Crouch was a whisker away from steering home a second goal.
But Pompey had to wait until after the break for their second - by which time Stoke had equalised in typical style.
Fuller muscled in between James and Glen Johnson to apply the final touch to a flicked-on Delap cross after 48 minutes, but within the next three minutes Defoe had restored Pompey's lead.
Defoe rattled the post after 50 minutes but made his next effort count moments later when an almost identical right-foot shot confounded stand-in goalkeeper Steve Simonsen.
Stoke continued their aerial bombardment but Simonsen, deputising for flu-hit Thomas Sorensen, needed to perform heroically to stop Defoe, Crouch and Traore adding more goals for Pompey.
One intervention by Simonsen was too much - careering out of his area to chop down the elusive Traore but was let off with a booking.
