Fratton Forever: What makes Portsmouth FC's stadium so special?

the best atmosphere in World football those are the words of Ronaldinho after he played here at portford fratton Park a sentiment that's been echoed by so many within the game fast forward 15 years since that night in the UEFA cup it's been a roller coaster ride on the south coast from the threat of liquidation to relegation to League 2 this is a city that's never given up on its football club and to this day frat Park remains one of the most intense atmospheres in football and we're here to find out what makes fratton Park so special [Applause] [Music] Portsmouth the only Island City in England and home to two-time FA Cup winners Portsmouth FC a football club and city like no other their Journey has not been straightforward but with the club now sitting top of the table we made the trip to the South Coast to speak to lifelong fans about that journey and experience the unique fratton Park atmosphere in Portsmouth you don't get to pick the football club the football club picks you it's a it's a one Club City it's an Island City you don't get a choice in the matter quite simply put what kind of sucked you into being a big pomy fan I know it's a little bit cliche but just the atmosphere and and just how how much you can see that it means to the people of this city I mean it's cliche but you're there for life you can't back out from it once you're in the door it's just it is an addiction I think at this point during the last 15 years the journey hasn't been an easy one for Portsmouth fans three relegations and twice going into Administration all thanks to poor financial management by previous ownership we were very close to losing Portsmouth football club altogether we were sort of a judge's hammer away from being put into liquidation that's probably the ultimate because you could have never come back from that I don't think you honestly I'd go to school thinking I got a football back a football club to come back home and support I was on the white and I went out for a friend's birthday on a I want to say it was a Friday night and I was fully expecting when I woke up at 11:00 a.m. the next morning with a h over the club was supposed to liquidate at about 9:30 10:00 the next morning you know that that was a wild rde between 2009 and 2013 when you know you were constantly in court constantly having points taken off us and we managed to find a way out of trouble and that is largely thanks to the fany you know when the supporters trust took over it was the at the time the biggest fan-owned football club there was after the fans trust saved the club TI began to turn for Portsmouth FC promotion from League 2 followed in 1617 along with the arrival of former Disney CEO Michael Eisner who purchased the club from the fans and allowed them to believe again a checker trade trophy win at Wembley in 2019 was a memorable moment for pompy fans but this season things have really ramped up when you then fast forward to now and the 15 months under John M we've had have been the best 15 months we've seen as as a football club in a decade that's only going to provoke the most fantastic response the the owners do deserve massive credit this place hasn't been rocking like it has in my 20 years of watching this football club I don't think yeah it's something quite special and the fact that you can twin the work that's gone on with the with the stands and and the stadium with a revitalized re-energized fan base I think that's an absolutely deadly combination and fratton park is somewhere that no team wants to come and play at the minute at the heart of portsman success this season is Club Captain Maron Pac a Boyhood pompy fan he grew up with a season ticket and blocked de the South stand and he has now leading the club on the pitch through a historic chapter Marlon Pac local Legend what is there to say about Marlon Pac as the song goes he's one of our own where are we sat we just just by the director's box in in the in the Posh seats yeah we're in the South down not too far from um where I had a season ticket as a as a kid growing up supporting pouth so yeah decent view you can see all the pitch and um yeah she's looking good at the minute when you've got that local connection when it's your Club you reckon you get that extra 5 10% in your game they're all playing with their heart on their sleeves but you're not going to get a better example of that than Marlon when when we set when we score a goal he probably celebrates just as much as 18 19 20,000 pompy fans that are here at P I'm seing all my dad's mates that I used to come to the games with and they're celebrating me so it's it's KN and everyone which sometimes is a good thing but sometimes it's a bad thing cuz everyone knows what you've been up to or know your business to get you or know your dog's cousin or something like I mean I know his cousin for for STS he lives a couple of doors down from me um so you know there there's that local connection that massive connection and I think for us as well is the fact that we could have somebody from our city who was born here went to school here grew up here and could lift that League one title trophy or Le or whatever promotion trophy we get whether it's first or it's second that's uh that's very unique because you don't you don't get that anymore at the minute I as it Parts me at time where I feel I I get actually quite emotional and choked up even looking back at results this year and the potential what we could achieve so come the end of the season I I dread to think what what state I'm going to be in especially when I see uh like my family in the crowd and stuff like that and um last year so when I first come so like I said I didn't actually realize it was like we play current Tre at home in the preseason friendly and I was like Wow FR Park like got goosebumps and then chefer Wednesday away near enough a Fall Away end and that like I literally I had had gooseb and I was like wow yeah that that's that's kind of like um the reason why I came back as such you know what I mean to have that feeling that I didn't know I had um or was in the kind of back of my mind yeah after seven years in League one this season could be the year Portman secure promotion to the championship topping the table since September John binho side have not look back and the fans have loved every step of the journey in the final weeks of the season the support of the fratt and Par crowd has become more crucial than ever dragging the team over the line and there was 10 to 15 minutes at the end of the Oxford game we were 2-1 up and there was just constant blue Army and play up pompy from all four corners of of this stadium that is exactly what got us over the line the players and the fans can take equal credit for the sharing those three points when this place gets going I genuinely do not think there is a better atmosphere in English football than here at fratton Park I mean the famous clip that everybody always talks about is that game against AC Milan that we had here back in 2008 where it was 90 minutes just full of noise around these four Wars and I don't think anybody had a voice left at the end of it yeah AC Milan game was the one that completely stands up for me cuz that atmosphere was was was unbelievable flip back to a few weeks ago now FR part it was Oxford away and it just had for me had REM remin reminiscent of that atmosphere and to compare uh a Europa League game against AC Milan atmosphere to a league one fish against Oxford just probably sums out how special the fans sorry on the 16th of April all ports required was a win against barnesley to secure the league one title and promotion to the championship a sellout fratton Park awaited on what had the potential to be historic Night Under The [Music] [Music] Lights what makes fat Park so special it it it's got something about it and and when it when it gets kicking and when it gets going there is not a fan base that can compete in The Terraces every club's got a bit of flavor about them hasn't it every club's got something different about them I think pompy probably more than the majority have got so much going for them in terms of a stadium a fan base this season a group of players to match as well so it's the perfect storm if we go a goal down rather than sort of starting to get a little bit testy if that's the right word um it tends to result and get us back in the Sid even more when you're in Ireland you kind of all knit in closer together I think that football is the symbolization of that Collective spirit and that Collective mentality so to me it's no surprise that a football club like this in a city like this is so well backed is so well supported and creates the atmosphere that it creates [Applause] when the going when when the going gets tough pompy fans get tougher and I generally don't know what I do without the club it's an integral part of my life you know you go through difficult times in your life you go through you know breakups bereavements all of these things that happen in everyone's life it's just a constant and it will always be there hopefully which isn't something i' have said in 200 late 2009 ask you what sort of feels different this season nothing at the moment up there was a famous quote from Alan Ball who said this city went to war and that's what he tried to get the message over to his players what it should mean to them to play for people like the portsman fans you know the way the last few years have gone look there's always been a good support here but there's never been that fever pitch night where we could really get ourselves going or there's something we can genuinely grasp the the promotion from League 2 was great but this season feels different and I think there's been so much adversity here over the years and people just become stronger because of it and naturally it's kind of just sticking with the lads and trusting us to to find a way cuz we will find a way uh and we'll find a way doing it our way [Applause] they're a side that doesn't know when they're beaten can't put it into words how much it would mean there's a feeling of there's a feeling the good days really are coming back [Music] oh you could imagine how desperate this place is this city is to get back into the championship and and not just that but the the element of we've done it we've been there we've been in the depths we've had the slump on the way up we're back on the rise again and seven promotions in 57 years isn't a lot so the one thing you've got to do is savor it saber it and remember it cuz they don't come along too often as a young kid as as Marlin P growing up in in the in the Senate reports it would have meant everything to now actually realize that are pompy on the way back I think they are yeah I think we are on the way back I think we're in a really good position we haven't been in in this strong of a position for a very long time would you change anything I genuinely don't think we'd probably be appreciating quite as much what we've got now have we not had those rough times nothing nothing um people say would you have not won the FA Cup if you could have avoided all the problems that came after the FA Cup and I'm a great believer that things are meant to be for a reason so we've from that from nearly being liquidated we became stronger and we are where we currently are [Music] oh [Music]

Channel: FanHub

Views: 9,768

Keywords: English Football, Football League, Lower League, Football, Football Fans, Football Supporters, Pompey, Portsmouth fc, Portsmouth champions, Pompey champions, fratton park, Portsmouth vs Barnsley, Pompey vs Barnsley

Id: 9YOx_HUYlio

Length: 12min 17sec (737 seconds)

Published: Mon Jun 03 2024