The club was founded in 1898 with
John Brickwood — owner of the local Brickwoods
Brewery — as chairman, and
Frank Brettell as the club's first manager. A blue plaque on the wall of 12
High Street Portsmouth commemorates the founding on 5 April. The club joined the
Southern League in 1899, with their first league match being played at
Chatham Town on
2 September 1899 (a 1--0 victory),followed three days later by the first match at
Fratton Park; a friendly against local rivals
Southampton, which was won 2--0, with goals from
Dan Cunliffe (formerly with
Liverpool) and
Harold Clarke (formerly with
Everton). That first season was successful, with the club winning 20 out of 28 league matches, earning them the runner-up spot in the league. 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. 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 the
FA Cup final, the third time they had done so. This time, Portsmouth managed to convincingly defeat favourites
Wolverhampton Wanderers 4--1.
Bert Barlow and
Jock Anderson scored whilst
Cliff Parker scored twice (3rd and 4th) to complete a famous victory.
League football was again suspended due to the
Second World War, meaning Portsmouth 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. In their "
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, but crashed out of the FA Cup in the semi-final against Leicester City. They still made up for it by claiming the league title in spectacular fashion. That season also saw them record a (then) massive attendance of 51,385, a club record which still stands to this day. The club powered their way to 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 the Second World War. Portsmouth finished third in 1954--55 and on
22 February 1956, they played the first Football League game under floodlights against
Newcastle United. Subsequent seasons saw Portsmouth struggle and they were relegated to the
Second Division in
1959. Portsmouth went down to the
Third Division in
1961 (the first former
English League champions to do so) but were promoted back to the Second Division at the first time of asking under the guidance of
George Smith.
Despite limited financial means,
Smith maintained Portsmouth's Second Division status throughout the sixties until moving upstairs to become general manager in April
1970. The cash injection that accompanied the arrival of
John Deacon as chairman in
1972 failed to improve Portsmouth's league position. With
Deacon unable to continue bankrolling the club on the same scale, Portsmouth were relegated to the Third Division in
1976. In
November 1976, the club found itself needing to raise £25,
000 to pay off debts and so avoid bankruptcy. With players having to be sold to ease the club's financial situation, and no money available for replacements, Portsmouth 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. Portsmouth 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, Portsmouth 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 Portsmouth were relegated straight back to the Second Division. The summer of
1988 saw Deacon sell the club to
London based businessman and former
Queens Park Rangers Chairman,
Jim Gregory.
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 Portsmouth reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing on penalties to eventual winners Liverpool after a replay. Portsmouth missed out on promotion to the
FA Premier League in 1992--93 only by virtue of having scored one less goal than
West Ham United. In the summer of
1996 Terry Venables arrived at Portsmouth as a consultant, later taking over as chairman after buying the club for £1 in
February 1997. Portsmouth's centenary season, 1998--99, saw a serious financial crisis hit the club, and in
December 1998 Portsmouth went into financial administration.
- published: 19 Jul 2014
- views: 4434