Portsmouth F.C.

Portsmouth F.C.

Portsmouth Football Club Crest
Full name	Portsmouth Football Club
Nickname(s)	Pompey, The Blues
Founded	1898
Ground	Fratton Park Portsmouth Hampshire, England
Capacity	20,288
Manager	Harry Redknapp
League	Premier League
2006–07	Premier League, 9th
Home colours Away colours

Portsmouth Football Club are an English football club based in the south coast city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey (also the nickname for the city) and play in the Premier League. The club is currently owned by the Franco-Russian businessman Alexandre Gaydamak.

History

Early years (1898 - 1911)

The club was founded in 1898 with John Brickwood, owner of the local brewery, as chairman, and Frank Brettell as the club's first manager. A common myth is that the club's first goalkeeper was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. While Conan Doyle did play for an amateur side, Portsmouth AFC, that flourished from 1882 to 1894, the first goalkeeper of the professional era was Matt Reilly who previously played for the successful Royal Artillery team.

The club's first league match was played at Chatham Town on 2 September 1899 (a 1-0 victory), followed three days later by the first match at Fratton Park against local rivals Southampton. That first season was hugely successful, with the club winning 20 out of 28 league matches, earning them runners-up spot in the Southern League. The league was won for the first time in the 1901-02 season, by which time Brettell had been replaced by club captain Bob Blyth as manager.

The 1906-1907 season was highlighted by the visit of Manchester United to Fatton Park in the FA Cup, which generated a record attendance of 24,329. A 2-2 draw meant a replay in Manchester, and Portsmouth recorded a famous 2-1 win. However, this record attendance was surpassed two seasons later when Sheffield Wednesday visited Fratton for the second round of the new FA Cup.

1910-11 saw Portsmouth relegated, but with the recruitment of Bob Brown as manager the team were promoted the next season.

Climbing up the league (1919 - 1927)

Football was suspended during World War I, but following the resumption of matches Portsmouth won the Southern League for the second time. Continuing success saw them in the Third Division for the 1920-21 season. They finished 12th that year, but won the league in the 1923-24 season. The club continued to perform well in the Second Division, winning promotion by finishing 2nd in the 1926-27 season, gaining a record 9-1 win over Notts County along the way.

Life at the top (1927 - 1939)

Portsmouth's debut season in the First Division was a struggle. The next season they continued to falter, losing 10-0 to Leicester City, still a club record defeat. However, despite their failings in the league that season also saw Portsmouth reach the FA Cup final for the first time, which they lost to Bolton Wanderers.

Portsmouth managed to survive relegation, and their fortunes began to change. In the 1930-31 season the club finished 4th. The 1933-34 season saw Portsmouth again reach the FA Cup Final, beating Manchester United, Bolton Wanderers, Leicester City and Birmingham City on the way. Unfortunately the club was again defeated in the final, this time to Manchester City.

Having established themselves in the top flight, the 1938-39 season saw Portsmouth reach their third FA Cup Final. This time the club managed to defeat the favourites, Wolves, convincingly 4-1. Bert Barlow scored twice whilst Cliff Parker and Jock Anderson completed the famous victory.

League football was again suspended due to World War II, (however they did reach the 1942 London War Cup Final losing to Brentford at Wembley) meaning Pompey hold the unusual distinction of holding the FA Cup for the longest uninterrupted period as the trophy wasn't contested again until the 1945-46 season. Nevertheless, with the Wartime Leagues in operation, Pompey signed various players of other clubs who happened to be serving in the Forces and stationed near Portsmouth on a temporary basis. One such was Andy Black of Glasgow Rangers who on one notable occasion scored 8 goals in a 16 - 1 thrashing of Clapton Orient.

Glory years (1946 - 1959)

League football resumed for the 1946-47 campaign. In Pompey's Golden Jubilee season of 1948-49, the club were tipped to be the first team of the 20th century to win the Football League and FA Cup double. However, Pompey crashed out of the FA Cup in the semi-final against Leicester City, but made up for it by claiming the league title in spectacular fashion. That season also saw a record attendance of 51,385, a record which still stands to this day.

The club retained the title the following year, beating Aston Villa 5-1 on the last day of the season, and are thus one of only five English teams to have won back to back titles since World War II.

Pompey enjoyed a fourth-place finish in 1951-52, but in the summer of 1952 championship-winning manager Bob Jackson left for Hull City. The players who had featured in the club's recent successes were now ageing and the young players coming into the side were not of comparable quality. Although the team finished third in 1954-55, subsequent seasons saw Pompey struggle and they were relegated to the Second Division in 1959.

Life in the lower leagues (1961 - 1976)

File:Portsmouth2.gif

Portsmouth F.C. badge in the 1970s.

Portsmouth went down to the Third Division in 1961 but were promoted back to the Second Division at the first time of asking.

A decade of mediocre performances in the Second Division followed, and despite the cash injection that accompanied the arrival of John Deacon as chairman in 1972, Pompey's fortunes failed to improve. With Deacon unable to continue bankrolling the club on the same scale, Pompey were relegated to the Third Division in 1976.

Near oblivion (1976 - 1980)

In November 1976 the club found itself needing to raise £25,000 to pay off debts and so avoid bankruptcy. The money was raised from supporter contributions after a campaign led by the local newspaper The News.

With players having to be sold to ease the club's financial situation, and no money available for replacements, Pompey were forced to rely on an untried manager, Ian St John and inexperienced young players. Consequently, they were relegated to the Fourth Division in 1978.

During this period and throughout the 1980s, Portsmouth was one of a number of football clubs with a reputation for Football hooliganism. The most notorious gang was called the 6:57 Crew. A self-proclaimed 'casual firm' of football hooligans, whose name came from the fact that many supporters would catch the 6:57 train from nearby Fratton railway station to London for away games. The advent of all-seater stadia following the Taylor Report into the Hillsborough disaster of 1989 contributed to a decrease in organised football-related violence, and the 6:57 Crew was gradually reduced to nothing by the 1990s. Two books have been written about the 6.57 Crew, Rolling With The 6.57 Crew by Cass Pennant & Rob Silvester and Playing Up With Pompey By Bob Beech.

Back on track (1980 - 1988)

Pompey were promoted back to Division Three in 1980, and in the 1982-83 season they won the Third Division championship, gaining promotion back to the Second Division.

Under Alan Ball's management, Pompey narrowly missed winning promotion to the First Division twice before finally succeeding in 1986-87. Unfortunately, by the middle of the 1987-88 season the club was again in grave financial trouble, and Pompey were relegated straight back to the Second Division. The summer of 1988 saw Deacon sell the club to London based businessman and former QPR Chairman, Jim Gregory.

Waiting for success (1988 - 2002)

Jim Smith's arrival as manager at the start of the 1991-92 season, combined with the emergence of some good young players, sparked a revival in the team's fortunes and that year Pompey reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing on penalties to eventual winners Liverpool after a replay. The following season, Pompey missed out on promotion to the FA Premier League only by virtue of having scored one less goal than West Ham United.

Chairman Gregory now called in the money he had lent the club over preceding seasons, and so players were sold with little funds available to buy replacements. The team's form declined, and Smith was controversially sacked in 1995 and replaced by Terry Fenwick. Relegation to the Second Division was avoided on the last day of the 1995-96 season when Pompey won away to Huddersfield Town while other results went the club's way.

In the summer of 1996 Terry Venables arrived at Pompey as a consultant, later taking over as chairman after buying the club for £1. The team enjoyed a run to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup in 1996-97, beating FA Premier League side Leeds United en route, but finished just short of the qualifying places for the play-offs for promotion to the Premier League. The 1997-98 season saw Venables lose his popularity with the club's supporters, as he signed several Australian players, most of whom failed to perform with much distinction, while his role as coach of the Australian national team meant he was frequently absent from Portsmouth; meanwhile, the team's results were poor. Two-thirds of the way through the season he and unpopular manager Fenwick left the club, Venables selling his shareholding back to Martin Gregory, son of former chairman Jim, while Alan Ball returned as manager. Relegation was again avoided on the last day of the season.

Pompey's centenary season, 1998-99, saw a serious financial crisis hit the club, and in December 1998 Portsmouth went into financial administration. Milan Mandarić saved the club with a takeover deal in May 1999, and the new chairman immediately started investing. Things did not get off to the best start under Mandarić, as Ball was sacked in November 1999 with the club near the bottom of the table. Tony Pulis took over and steered the club to safety, but only lasted ten months at the helm after which he was put on gardening leave (and sacked not long afterwards) due to a poor relationship with Mandarić. Veteran player Steve Claridge stepped up to manager, and some initial success saw talk of promotion to the Premiership, only for a horrific run of defeats to set in after the new year, resulting in Claridge being reduced back to player and being replaced in 2001 by Chelsea coach Graham Rix. Rix did not prove an entirely popular appointment, as he had been jailed for a sexual offence two years previously, and the club only survived on the last day of the season when they won their final game and Huddersfield Town lost theirs, keeping Portsmouth up at their expense.

Over the summer, recently sacked West Ham manager Harry Redknapp was appointed Director of Football, and most observers concluded that the minute results did not swing Rix's way, he would be sacked and replaced by Redknapp. Sure enough, after an early promotion charge degenerated into mid-table mediocrity and Pompey were knocked out of the FA Cup by Third Division side Leyton Orient, Rix lost his job in early 2002, with Redknapp taking over as predicted. Former manager Jim Smith was asked to team up with Redknapp, and while he initially turned the offer down to remain as assistant at Coventry City, he soon arrived at Portsmouth after Coventry sacked most of their coaching staff near the end of the season.

Portsmouth reach the Premiership (2002 - 2004)

In Redknapp's first full season in charge, (2002-03), he brought in a number of experienced Premiership players such as Steve Stone and Paul Merson. Pompey stormed the league, comfortably beating second-placed Leicester City to the Division One Championship with three games to spare, and the following season the club tipped for immediate relegation from the Premiership surprised many by staying up and have remained in the top flight ever since. During their four Premiership seasons to date Pompey have produced some surprise results, notably three home wins - including two in consecutive seasons - against Manchester United.

In their Premiership debut season, Portsmouth had one of the best home records in the Premiership, but poor away form restricted them to a 13th place finish. Had they been able to match their impressive home form on their travels, then a top half finish or even a European place could have been achieved. After the third game of the season, a 4-0 home victory against Bolton Wanderers, Pompey topped the Premiership and were comfortably in mid-table throughout the autumn, inflicting a resounding 6-1 victory at Fratton Park on Leeds United in November 2003. A 1-1 draw against Arsenal at Highbury, when Teddy Sheringham put Pompey in control before half-time, before a foul on the title-bound Gunners' Robert Pires earned the Londoners a penalty in the closing stages of the match, which when converted effectively ended the South Coast club's chance of registering a famous away win over Arsenal, signalled the start of a run of eleven games in a row without victory for Pompey. There were suggestions, backed by evidence from video replays on the BBC's Match of the Day, that Pires may have dived in the box during the match at Highbury, precipitating the award of the penalty, although Pires has always vehemently maintained his innocence. Nevertheless, this draw marked the first of a horrendous run of results that left the team odds on to be relegated in mid-March. However, a 1-0 win at home to rivals Southampton followed by a first Premiership away win at Blackburn Rovers' Ewood Park proved to be the catalyst for a run of form that included a famous 1-0 win over Manchester United in April, with Steve Stone (rejected by Sir Alex Ferguson on a bid to join Manchester United less than two years earlier) the scorer in Pompey's first win over Manchester United for nearly 60 years. This surprise win handed Pompey a relegation lifeline as it lifted them out of the drop-zone for the first time since February. A 2-1 away win over Leeds United and a 1-1 draw at home to Fulham in their next two matches confirmed that Portsmouth would not be relegated in their first Premiership season. The club signed off their impressive Premiership debut season with a 5-1 crushing of the season's league cup winners Middlesbrough at Fratton Park on the final day of the season on 15th May 2004.

Crisis and Struggle (2004 - 2006)

Despite their successful partnership, Mandarić and Redknapp clashed several times during their time together. At the end of the 2003-04 season Mandarić was considering replacing some of the club's coaching staff, including Redknapp's assistant Jim Smith. No changes took place, and after an uneasy start to the 2004-2005 season, failing to win any of their first three matches, two consecutive home wins (4-3 over Fulham and 3-1 over Crystal Palace) started a steady run of form (including a famous 2-0 win over Manchester United at Fratton Park in October) that saw them remain comfortably in mid-table between August and December. However, despite the team's achievements on the pitch, behind the scenes all was not well. The two clashed again more seriously when Mandarić proposed appointing another director in November, with responsibility for the youth set-up at the club. Redknapp disapproved of the proposal but Mandarić pressed ahead and appointed Velimir Zajec. Redknapp, along with his assistant Jim Smith, subsequently resigned with immediate effect on 23 November.

Zajec took over as manager, initially as caretaker, then on 20 December 2004 the club announced that he would manage the team for the remainder of the season. Their first game under Zajec was a 1-0 away win over Bolton Wanderers, in a hard-fought match where Portsmouth captain Arjan de Zeeuw and Bolton striker El-Hadji Diouf had an on-pitch skirmish in the second half that later prompted Diouf to spit in de Zeeuw's face. This victory lifted Portsmouth into the top half of the table for the first time since August. However, on 7 April 2005 after a poor run of results which saw Portsmouth wallow away from as high as ninth place on Boxing Day to 15th position in the table by the end of March, Alain Perrin was appointed team manager, with Zajec reverting to his director's role.

After having looked in real danger of relegation for most of the second half of the season, Portsmouth's 4-1 victory at home to local rivals Southampton on 24 April 2005 brought the club close to securing Premiership survival which became virtually certain six days later when, although Portsmouth lost at Manchester City, two clubs lower in the table also failed to win their matches, leaving Portsmouth needing only a single point from their two remaining games to make survival certain. A week later Portsmouth made sure of their safety by securing a last-gasp 1-1 home draw against Bolton Wanderers in their penultimate game of the season, a result that meant they could not finish lower than 16th place (eventually their final position). On 15 May 2005, the final day of the season, Portsmouth's 2-0 defeat at West Bromwich Albion gave Albion survival and relegated Southampton, resulting in a carnival atmosphere at the end of the match which saw both sets of fans invade the pitch. The 2005-06 season thus saw Portsmouth play in a higher league than rivals Southampton for the first time since 1960.

Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Pompey's main goal threat for the past two and a half seasons was sold to Middlesbrough for £7.5m and several other players were transferred as Perrin began to stamp his authority on the club. After many years of waiting, plans emerged for a redevelopment of Fratton Park itself - the aim being to turn a dilapidated, old style league ground into a 21st century, 30,000 seat stadium. Off the field changes also occurred with departure of Director of Football Zajec for personal reasons.

Portsmouth continued to struggle in the 2005-2006 season, winning just two games between August and November - a lucky 1-0 victory over Everton at Goodison Park (courtesy of an own goal by Everton defender Duncan Ferguson) and a 4-1 away win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. During a hard-fought 1-0 defeat to Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium in early October where Portsmouth enjoyed the lion's share of possession and goal chances only to succumb to a superb first-half volley by Bolton's Kevin Nolan, Perrin's continual harassing of the match officials saw him ordered away from the pitchside by the referee, an incident that landed Perrin in hot water with the FA and also led many pundits to believe his demise was now only a matter of time. The club's series of poor results (that set a record low number of points for a Portsmouth manager) continued into December 2005, at which time Mandaric finally reached the end of his tether and Alain Perrin was sacked.

Former manager Harry Redknapp took charge again a couple of weeks later, leaving south coast rivals Southampton. The appointment made headlines on the sports pages of the UK press, with fans divided into strong pro and anti Redknapp camps. Unusual betting patterns shortly before Redknapp left Southampton resulted in the club and Redknapp himself being investigated by the FA. After months of investigation, no charges followed. The return of Redknapp to the club lifted morale for Portsmouth, and in late December 2005 they finally scored their first victory at Fratton Park since April with a 2-1 success over relegation rivals West Bromwich Albion and followed it up with another 2-1 home victory over West Ham. These two wins and a 1-1 draw against Fulham lifted Portsmouth from 19th to 16th in the table, but soon after, three heavy away defeats in a row (3-0 against both Manchester United and Liverpool and 4-0 against Arsenal) dropped Portsmouth to the foot of the table at the New Year. By now, many bookies believed that any prospect of survival was over.

A Change of Fortunes (2006 - present)

In January 2006, Milan Mandarić confirmed he was to sell a stake in the club to Franco-Russian businessman Alexandre Gaydamak, and a cash injection of a reported £15 million enabled Portsmouth to purchase Benjani from AJ Auxerre for a club record £4.1m as well as Sean Davis, Pedro Mendes and Noé Pamarot; taking Wayne Routledge, Azar Karadaş and Andrés D'Alessandro on loan.

It appeared that this new cash injection, the return of Harry Redknapp to the club and the arrival of several new players would be too little too late for Portsmouth, as at the beginning of March 2006 they were twelve points adrift from safety with eight matches left.

When their chief relegation rivals Birmingham City thrashed Portsmouth 5-0 - Pompey's heaviest defeat to date in the Premiership, and also their sixth match without scoring a goal - Pompey looked certain to be relegated and the result also seemed to have put both Birmingham and West Bromwich Albion out of Pompey's reach. Despite a valiant effort, the club were unable to repeat their home success against Manchester United for a third consecutive season, and lost their clash at Fratton Park 3-1.

However, a late equaliser by on-loan Azar Karadaş in a 1-1 home draw against Bolton Wanderers, followed by a last minute winning goal by Pedro Mendes at home to Manchester City sparked a dramatic change in form and fortunes in March and April, which coincided with a loss of form for both Birmingham and WBA. After gaining 17 points from 8 games, Portsmouth avoided relegation on April 29 2006 with a win in the penultimate game of the season at Wigan Athletic, combined with Birmingham City's failure to beat Newcastle United, to put Portsmouth beyond the pursuit of the Premiership's bottom three sides.

On 19 July, 2006, co-owner and club chairman Milan Mandarić transferred full ownership of the club over to Alexandre Gaydamak, after a 7-year tenure, that saw Portsmouth rise from the brink of liquidation into the top tier of domestic football. Mandarić remained at the club as Non-Executive Chairman until 25 September, 2006, before taking over English Championship club Leicester City.

During the summer transfer window, England internationals Glen Johnson (on a one-season loan from Chelsea), David James and Sol Campbell were signed as well as former under 21 midfielder David Thompson. Thompson departed for Bolton Wanderers in February 2007, but Campbell and James have both remained at Portsmouth since. Veteran strikers Nwankwo Kanu and Andrew Cole were brought in on short term contracts, with midfielders Manuel Fernandes and Roudolphe Douala joining on loan. Serbian midfielder Ognjen Koroman's loan from Terek Grozny was extended for a further season, although he left the club in January 2007. Pompey's most expensive signing of the transfer window was that of Croatia international Niko Kranjčar, who cost £3.5 million from Hajduk Split.

Portsmouth made a strong start to the 2006-07 Premiership campaign without conceding any goals in their first five games and were briefly top of the Premiership. Two defeats in a row to Bolton Wanderers (1-0 at Fratton) and Tottenham Hotspur (2-1 at White Hart Lane) dented this record, but the team continued to make progress and build on their strong start so that at Christmas they still occupied fourth place, prompting speculation that they might emulate the achievements of former Premier League strugglers Bolton, Everton and Middlesbrough by qualifying for the UEFA Cup or even the Champions League, though Manchester United and Chelsea's excellent form meant that neither Bolton and Portsmouth (occupying third and fourth positions respectively at Christmas), nor any other Premiership sides, were considered serious title challengers by this stage. However, a run of poorer results after Christmas moved Portsmouth down towards mid-table, with qualification for Europe a prospect that would have to wait for at least another year.

Nevertheless, Portsmouth could still take many positives from their 2006-2007 campaign, not least the fact that they had never, at any stage of the season, looked to be in danger of relegation - largely due to their massive improvement in away game form compared with their three previous Premiership outings - and also that their home form had remained consistently strong. Additionally, there were also many encouraging results for the club, including victories over Manchester United, Everton, Reading, Newcastle United and Liverpool. By the end of the season they had amassed 54 points from 38 games (their best-ever achievement in the Premiership) and recovered from their mid-season slump to finish a respectable ninth in the final table - much higher than many had expected before the season started.

On the 21st of May 2007, Canterbury of New Zealand announced a deal to make the kit for Portsmouth. This was the company's first venture into football.

Rivalries

Prior to the mid/late 1960s, rivalry between Portsmouth and Southampton was largely nonexistent, as a consequence of their disparity in league status. This derby match has hence taken place relatively infrequently as, for much of their history, the two teams have been in different divisions. Since 1977, the teams have only played league games against each other in three seasons (1987-88, 2003-04 and 2004-05). The last time Portsmouth and Southampton faced off was in the 2004-05 season, when Portsmouth won 4-1 at Fratton Park. Southampton's subsequent relegation at the end of that season ensured that the South Coast derby once again went into abeyance - see South Coast derby

During the 70's and 80's, other teams - for example Millwall - filled the void on and off the pitch.

The Pompey Chimes

The best known chant from the Pompey supporters is the Pompey Chimes ("Play up Pompey, Pompey play up" sung to the tune of the Westminster Chimes) which is sung around Fratton Park. The origins of the 'Pompey Chimes' lies with the Royal Artillery, Portsmouth's most popular and successful football team for much of the 1890s, who played many of their home games at the United Services ground in Burnaby Road. The nearby Guildhall clock would strike the quarter hours and the referees would use the clock to let them know when the match should finish at 4pm. Just before 4pm the crowd would lilt in unison with the chimes of the hour to encourage the referee to blow the whistle signifying full time. The original words to 'The Chimes', as printed in the 1900-01 Official Handbook of Portsmouth FC, were:

Play up Pompey,
Just one more goal!
Make tracks! What ho!
Hallo! Hallo!!

With the demise of Royal Artillery after their expulsion from the 1898-99 FA Amateur Cup for alleged professionalism, many of Royal Artillery's supporters transferred their allegiance to the newly formed Portsmouth F.C. and brought the Chimes chant with them.

Portsmouth's fans are widely thought of as the most atmospheric fans in the Country, leading to their home ground being nicknamed "Fortress Fratton". Atmosphere's which are most memorable include Portsmouth's 1-0 win over Stockport which helped Alan Ball's side to an incredible escape from relegation to division 2. A journalist described it best, saying "each attack from Stockport was seemingly halted by a wall of sound". Thierry Henry is another person to have admired the famous Fratton End when he praised Pompey's fans during Arsenal's 5-1 demolition of the South coast side in the Fa Cup on 6th March 2004.

Club crest

Portsmouth F.C.'s club crest, like its nickname, is derived from that of the city. The official emblem contains a gold star and crescent on a blue shield. Portsmouth's adoption of the star and crescent (usually synonymous with Islam) is said to have came from when King Richard I, granted the city "a crescent of gold on a shade of azure, with a blazing star of eight points" which he had taken from the Emperor's standard of Governor Isaac Komnenos, after capturing Cyprus. It is one of the most recognisable football crests in English football and is nicknamed 'the smiley crest' because of its similarity to a smiling face.

Throughout its history Portsmouth have tried different variations of the crest before reverting back to the basic gold star and crescent. In the 1950s and 1960s the traditional crest was emblazoned on the shirt in white rather than gold but this was due to white being a cheaper alternative.

Between 1980 and 1989 the club scrapped the original crest and replaced it with a new design. This crest showed a football on top of an anchor (representing the navy) and a sword (representing the army). An interchangeable version included a circular version of the star and crescent crest in place of the football.

File:Arms-portsmouth.jpg

The Portsmouth F.C. badge from 1993-97.

The return of the original crest in 1989 only lasted 4 years when it was replaced by the city's coat of arms in 1993. This design centred around the basic star and crescent but was unpopular with many fans who thought it was overelaborate. After only four seasons the original crest was again reinstated and remains to the present day. In time for the 2007 season "Since 1898" was added to the badge underneath the club's name.

Honours

• Football League
  • Champions 1949, 1950
• FA Cup
  • Winners 1939
  • Runners-up 1929,1934
• League Division One
  • Champions 2003
• League Division Two
  • Runners-up 1927,1987
• League Division Three
  • Champions 1962, 1983
• Football League Third Division South
  • Champions 1924
• Southern League
  • Champions 1902, 1920
• FA Charity Shield
  • Shared 1949
• Wartime Cup
  • Runners-up 1942

Stadium

Portsmouth play their home games at Fratton Park, in Portsmouth.

• Capacity - 20,224 (all seated)
• Opened - 1898
• Pitch size - 115 x 73 yards

The ground has been home to the club throughout its entire history but, despite improvements, is showing signs of age. Therefore at the end of the 2003/04 season, having consolidated their Premier League status, plans to develop a new stadium on the adjacent disused rail-freight depot site were drawn up and approved.

These plans were superseded by a new plan to redevelop, more or less on the existing site, but realigning the pitch 90 degrees to accommodate a larger capacity, ultimately 35,000, funded in part by a "Pompey Village" luxury residential project on the adjacent site. Work on the stadium was planned to start in the summer of 2006 but did not happen. By October 2006 several alternative sites for the new stadium were also being considered including the King George V playing fields site in Cosham in the north of the city.

These plans were dropped however, when it was announced on April 25 2007 that Portsmouth were to build a new, and truly unique 36,000 capacity stadium on reclaimed land in the city's docklands area, although planning permission is yet to be granted with Portsmouth set to make an application to the council in the autumn after consultation with stakeholders. Subject to permission being granted, Portsmouth hope to be playing in their new stadium by 2011. The entire project, which will incorporate around 1,500 waterfront apartments as well as restaurants and other leisure facilities surrounding the new stadium and around 750 new homes at the existing site of Fratton Park is estimated to cost in the region of £600million. [1]

Club records

• Record Attendance: 51,385 v Derby County, FA Cup, 26 February 1949
• Record Victory: 9 -1 v Notts County, Division 2, 9 April 1927
• Record Defeat: 0 - 10 v Leicester City, Division 1, 20 October 1928
• Most Appearances for club: 834 Jimmy Dickinson
• Most League Goals for club: 194 Peter Harris, 1946-60
• Most League Goals in a season: 42 Guy Whittingham, 1992/93
• Most Goals for club: 208 Peter Harris, 1946-60
• Most International Caps whilst at club: 48 Jimmy Dickinson
• Transfer Record (Received): £7.5m from Middlesbrough for Yakubu, July 2005
• Transfer Record (Paid): £7m to Udinese for Sulley Ali Muntari, May 2007

Non-playing staff

• Owner: Alexandre Gaydamak
• Chairman:
• Vice Chairman:
• Directors: Alexandre Gaydamak,Mark Johnson,Peter Storrie,Roberto Avondo
• Chief Executive: Peter Storrie
• Manager: Harry Redknapp
• Assistant Manager: Tony Adams
• Head Coach: Joe Jordan
• Technical Director: Avraham Grant
• Goalkeeping Coach: David Coles
• Reserve Team Coach: Paul Groves
• Head of Youth Development: Mark Kelly, Paul Hart
• Youth Team Coach: Shaun Brookes
• Youth Development and Recruitment:, Steve Martin
• Chief Scout: Ian Broomfield
• Club Doctor: Nigel Sellars

Premiership record

Portsmouth have been members of the FA Premier League since winning the old First Division in 2003. Their best finish occurred in the 2006/2007 season when they finished 9th.

Season	Pos	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
2003-04	13	38	12	9	17	47	54	45
2004-05	16	38	10	9	19	43	59	39
2005-06	17	38	10	8	20	37	62	38
2006-07	9	38	14	12	12	45	42	54

Pos = Position; P = Played; W = Won; D = Drawn; L = Lost; F = Goals For; A = Goals Against; Pts = Points; * = Season Not Yet Finished;

Players

As of 25 May 2007.

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	ENG	David James
2	DF	ENG	Linvoy Primus
3	DF	SRB	Dejan Stefanović (captain)
5	DF	EIR	Andy O'Brien
6	DF	MLI	Djimi Traoré
8	FW	ENG	Andrew Cole
9	FW	BUL	Svetoslav Todorov
10	DF	CMR	Lauren
11	DF	FRA	Noé Pamarot
14	DF	ENG	Matthew Taylor
15	GK	ENG	Jamie Ashdown
16	DF	ENG	Andy Griffin
19	MF	CRO	Niko Kranjčar
21	MF	FRA	Franck Songo'o
22	MF	SCO	Richard Hughes

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
23	DF	ENG	Sol Campbell
24	DF	WAL	Richard Duffy
25	FW	ZIM	Benjani Mwaruwari
26	MF	ENG	Gary O'Neil (vice-captain)
27	FW	NGA	Nwankwo Kanu
28	MF	ENG	Sean Davis
30	MF	POR	Pedro Mendes
31	GK	CAN	Asmir Begović
32	FW	COD	Lomana LuaLua
34	MF	FRA	Arnold Mvuemba (on loan from Rennes)
35	GK	ENG	Nicholas Jordan
––	DF	FRA	Sylvain Distin
––	DF	ISL	Hermann Hreiðarsson
––	MF	GHA	Sulley Muntari

Reserve and youth team

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
––	GK	ENG	Tommy Smith
––	DF	ENG	Joel Ward
––	DF	ENG	Gregory Lake
––	DF	ENG	Joe Oastler
––	DF	ENG	Tom Roberts
––	DF	ENG	Ryan Woodford
––	DF	ENG	Jason Pearce
––	MF	ENG	Ray Rogers
––	MF	ENG	Jack Plummer
––	MF	IRL	Marc Wilson

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
––	MF	ENG	Scott Harris
––	MF	ENG	Matty Ritchie
––	MF	NIR	Daryl Fordyce
––	FW	CMR	Berlin Ndebe-Nlome
––	FW	ENG	Jack Compton
––	FW	ENG	Louis Bell
––	FW	ENG	TJ McClory-Cuthbertson
––	FW	THA	Supat Rungratsamee
––	FW	ITA	Giovanni Torre
––	FW	ZAM	Collins Mbesuma

Retired numbers

• 12 For Portsmouth Fans
• 1 (2001-2002 season) - In respect to goalkeeper Aaron Flahavan who died in a car crash in August 2001.

For recent transfers, see List of English football transfers 2006-07.

Pompey Player of the Year (1968-2007)

Year Winner 1968 Ray Pointer 1969 John Milkins 1970 Nick Jennings 1971 David Munks 1972 Richie Reynolds 1973 not awarded 1974 Paul Went 1975 Mick Mellows 1976 Paul Cahill 1977 not awarded 1978 not awarded 1979 Peter Mellor

Year Winner 1980 Joe Laidlaw 1981 Keith Viney 1982 Alan Knight 1983 Alan Biley 1984 Mark Hateley 1985 Neil Webb 1986 Noel Blake 1987 Noel Blake 1988 Barry Horne 1989 Micky Quinn 1990 Guy Whittingham 1991 Martin Kuhl

Year Winner 1992 Darren Anderton 1993 Paul Walsh 1994 Kit Symons 1995 Alan Knight 1996 Alan Knight 1997 Lee Bradbury 1998 Andy Awford 1999 Steve Claridge 2000 Steve Claridge 2001 Scott Hiley 2002 Lewis Buxton 2003 Svetoslav Todorov

Year Winner 2004 Linvoy Primus 2005 Dejan Stefanović 2006 Gary O'Neil 2007 David James

Managers

Figures correct as of 14 April 2007.

Name	Nat	Managerial Tenure	P	W	D	L	Win %
Frank Brettell		August 1898–May 1901	88	56	9	23	64%
Bob Blyth		August 1901–May 1904	142	84	29	29	59%
Richard Bonney		August 1904–May 1908	206	99	39	68	48%
Bob Brown		August 1911–May 1920	220	100	48	72	45%
John McCartney		May 1920–May 1927	308	129	93	86	42%
Jack Tinn		May 1927–May 1947	586	229	131	226	39%
Bob Jackson		May 1947–June 1952	234	114	51	69	49%
Eddie Lever		August 1952–April 1958	261	88	67	106	34%
Freddie Cox		August 1958–February 1961	120	28	29	63	23%
George Smith		April 1961–April 1970	410	149	110	151	36%
Ron Tindall		April 1970–May 1973	130	34	40	56	26%
John Mortimore		May 1973–September 1974	47	16	13	18	34%
Ian St. John		September 1974–May 1977	124	31	33	60	25%
Jimmy Dickinson		May 1977–May 1979	91	27	29	35	30%
Frank Burrows		May 1979–May 1982	138	61	39	38	44%
Bobby Campbell		May 1982–May 1984	88	40	17	31	45%
Alan Ball		May 1984–January 1989	222	94	58	70	42%
John Gregory		January 1989–January 1990	50	10	15	25	20%
Frank Burrows		January 1990–March 1991	60	20	17	23	33%
Jim Smith		June 1991–February 1995	199	81	54	64	41%
Terry Fenwick		August 1995–January 1998	131	43	29	59	33%
Alan Ball		January 1998–December 1999	97	28	26	43	29%
Tony Pulis		January 2000–October 2000	35	11	10	14	31%
Steve Claridge		October 2000–February 2001	23	5	10	8	22%
Graham Rix		February 2001–March 2002	56	16	17	23	29%
Harry Redknapp		March 2002–November 2004	116	54	26	36	47%
Velimir Zajec		November 2004–April 2005	21	5	4	12	24%
Alain Perrin		April 2005–November 2005	21	4	6	11	19%
Harry Redknapp		December 2005–	67	25	16	26	37%

Includes all competitive matches

Women's football

The club's female counterpart is Portsmouth L.F.C., which currently plays in the FA Women's Premier League Southern Division.

Record signing

On May 30th 2007, Portsmouth have completed the club-record signing - thought to be around £7million - of Ghana midfielder Sulley Muntari in a five-year deal from Udinese.

External links

• Official Website
• Portsmouth F.C. on BBC Sport: Club news – Recent results and fixtures
• Premierleague.com - Portsmouth
• Portsmouth FC at the Open Directory Project

References

• Colin Farmery (2005). Portsmouth: the Modern Era - a Complete Record. Desert Island Books. ISBN 1-905328-08-7.

• Colin Farmery (1999). Portsmouth: From Tindall to Ball - A Complete Record. Desert Island Books. ISBN 1-874287-25-2.

• Dave Juson & others (2004). Saints v Pompey - A history of unrelenting rivalry. Hagiology. ISBN 0-9534474-5-6.

• Colin Farmery (2004). Seventeen Miles From Paradise - Saints v Pompey: Passion, Pride and Prejudice. Desert Island Books. ISBN 1-874287-89-9.