The columns are basic steel columns – not as fine as some of the others of his creations, but the steelfitting to the roof construction has the right has the right Archibald Leitch look. Work to remove Fratton Park's floodlights has begun. Wednesday, 15th May 2019, 4:22 pm. The floodlights were launched in October 1962, following a fundraising campaign by the old Portsmouth FC Supporters’ Club.

It just serves to remind me that my body is actually inside a football ground – and I am not sitting at home in my comfortable armchair watching television. The reason why Archie was invited to built a new stand in the first place, was that Portsmouth in 1920 was elected to the football league – and in this way received a financial boost.

Colin informs me that there is no proper space for a memorial garden, but inside the Fratton End, supporters are allowed to put up plaques for lost ones on a memorial wall. Fratton Park’s iconic floodlights will tomorrow night serve Pompey for the final time. This is how it should feel like. As a season ticket holder at Fratton Park you have described everything I love about our beautiful, rickety old ground. Just off a station at Falmer – with green fields and a university campus next to it. “Watch out for that number 7”, the guy behind me keeps saying. Just like the match. I hope desperately that the owners will allow us to stay and not sell out to the modernisation of football.
I have heard that the Fratton End is noisy and generates a great atmosphere at Portsmouth matches, but I must admit that I am quite disappointed to find out that most of the noise is generated by the almost constant banging on a drum, accompanied by a bugle and bell by a couple of dressed-up Portsmouth fans. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. It will be worth watching a match from the North Stand for the concourse alone. To do this click on the cookie settings button below. But I can see the goal clearly, and if I move a little from side to side, I can actually follow all the action. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Top English Football Ground Advent Calendar 2018: 24th December, Top English Football Ground Advent Calendar 2018: 23th December, Follow Football and material culture on WordPress.com. Compared to all the security and restrictions at Premier league matches, it is great to see players stopping for autographs and photos with the fans. PMC Construction removed the tower between the North Stand and Fratton End, with the structure set to be re-homed in the North Stand car park.

( Log Out /  Over 6,000 never returned. Not enough space between the seats and restricted view from the pillars holding the roof. You feel that you enter a room, rather than just being sheltered by a roof. The Archibald Leitch stand and the mock tudor pavillon are not the only reasons. 100% white. Some point out that all-seaters and football tourists have made stadiums go so quiet, so you have to try out anything that may have a reverse effect; a few others point out that it is mainly younger fans trying to adapt this element, and the older generation should allow them to develop their way of consuming a match. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. But I don’t feel troubled by either at all. As a nice gesture, the roof was extended slightly to give some cover to the front rows. It is part of this place’s history.

Another factor in the adoption of floodlighting was the dawning on club officials of the potential for lucrative midweek European fixtures. I wonder if the television gantry replaced it. It’s forced upon us sadly. As much as Colin is keen on preserving the historic features, he is not that bothered by the potential scrapping of the floodlight pylons. Originally, the pavillon had a balcony towards the pitch, as well as a clock tower. But the ethnic composition is very one-sided. For such a modern construction, it is quite rare to have pillars, partially obstructing view. Couldn’t agree more about the monotonous drumming. Away ends in which 143 supporters sit freckled across plastic seats don’t work. Fratton Park is an association football ground in the English port city of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom. This was just a single match in very long history. The days of the pylons, though, seem numbered at Fratton Park as well. It would be even greater if you were allowed to have standing sections with crush barriers in the paddock in the ‘old’ sections – and maybe even make track the food and drinks being sold in old days. Current strengthening work on the South stand will allow that to follow suit, thereby subsequently rendering the remaining two operating pylons defunct.

Originally the were placed on the roof like they are now. There’s nothing like Fratton Park when the whole ground is rocking. 18 June 2019 Floodlight removal work begins. And now that seats have been installed there, you risk the rather dubious pleasure of sitting in the rain watching a match. Then all proper football fans will have to go and live this experience.
Together, the four stands reveal archaological layers from football throughout a century. All shaped by the streets of terraced housing around the ground.

In fact, the different chronological layers of the ground reflect the Pompeys’ fortunes on the pitch. As the directors’ box is situated right in the middle of the stand, we have to walk through a corridor for stadium security to get there from the board room. New photos show Fratton Park’s historic floodlights being removed for good Work has begun on removing the floodlight pylons at Fratton Park. Certainly a great sight. But credit to him that he did not demolish the entire cottage. “Fortress Fratton” proclaims the message on the wall just outside the home dressing room. We meet in front of the cottage, which, according to Simon Inglis, was built in 1905, not 1898 when the club was formed and the club purchased the ground. In 1956, Fratton Park hosted the first floodlit Football League fixture - giving impetus for other clubs to follow Portsmouth’s lead. Upgrading your membership means you can get additional access to: Don't forget, at least 70% of all net revenue from iFollow goes directly to us!

A couple of weeks ago, someone in the facebook group “Football Stadia & Grounds” asked members to name the iconic features still in existence at British football grounds. A final feature that I notice is the directors’ box is the elegant railing of the stair. And although the atmosphere in this match was not particularly great, the fact the fact that it was almost a capacity crowd (just like the rest of Portsmouth’s home matches) testifies to the proud history and tradition around the ground. But it really gives the dressing room feel: “9 McGrath. Strong, compete, will run all day, is a threat”.”8 Aguair – can play”. The top floor is being prepared for matchday hospitality. “6 Headland. Trying to catch up with the remaining Archibald Leitch stands before they are demolished, it is strange to come across something that was actually partly destroyed by Archie himself. Portsmouth Football Club are delighted that planning permission has been unanimously granted by the council planning committee for phase one of the proposed development of Fratton Park. I make my way back to Fratton station. After all, the pylons were not erected until 1962. He was rubbed by the Blackpool number 7 Kyle Vassel, who calmy slotted the ball home when one on one with the keeper. This website and its associated newspaper are members of Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Aerially dominant, lacks pace, compete”. Alternatively, please email ifollow@efl.com - note that live chat is recommended for the quickest response on a matchday. It also gives a different soundscape to most modern grounds. It will, indeed, be fitting, if Colin’s vision for the Archibald Leitch stand is realized. Pompey’s away match at Plymouth has been selected for live television coverage. Place gives perspective.

Fabulous article! I am fortunate that chairman of Pompey History  Society, Colin Farmery, has agreed to give me a guided tour of the ground before kick-off. Portsmouth are famous for the fans having rallied to save the club and take it over financially – only to sell it to a business man, hoping he can put the money necessary to compete at the top level of football into it. We walk through the Fratton End stand to have a look at the main stand from this side. No brainer. A planning application lodged on March 28 seeks permission to relocate it to the North stand car park, serving as an historic reminder. Fratton Park is special, my grandfather was brought up through the Southern league days and the inception to the Football League, my father was a supporter,and I since 1959 to today and now I take 2 of my young Grandsons. The final message for the players before they enter the field is another reminder for the players of the historic roots of the club: “Remember who you represent! Somehow, the gabled roof gives a completely different feeling to the stand. Fratton Park was also deliberately built close to a train station; but also  in a residential area. Floodlights are now fixed to the roof of the north stand, and one of the pylons look sadly impotent without any lights. In concrete stands, the acoustics are more like a parking house.

Again, it was success on the field in reaching the FA Cup final, that generated the money. Along the Milton End, the stand is at least sepearated from the housing by Specks Lane. But beside these memorial walls, there is also a Wall of Fame, where fans have paid £50 for having a standardized plaque put up. There is no way back for Portsmouth in this.

However, I am more interested in Archibald Leitch features. I feel so close to history every week walking through the turnstiles, following in the footsteps of my Grandad and all those countless men in flat caps who have watched from those stands in the past and that is something which, once lost, can never be replaced.

Of course the original floodlights weren’t quite as powerful as all that. As Portsmouth was the first English club to stage a floodlit league match back in 1956, I am interested in having a closer look at the floodlights. It was not until 1996 that the remaining stand was demolished and replaced by the current Fratton End, which was opened in 1997. A week later, I express my dislike for drumming at football matches in a facebook group – and get just short of 450 responses.

Colin tells me, that if the new owners of the club decide to stay at Fratton Park, it his dream to make the stand a living football museum. The disused pylon on the north-west side of the ground, though, is set to be spared. But still, it gives you a feeling that the ground has been shoehorned down among terraced houses more than a hundred years ago – a far cry from stadiums like Brighton’s, which look more like spaceships that have landed in a desolate place as far from populated areas as possible.

Sunderland’s visit in the play-off semi-final second leg marks the last home match of the campaign, irrespective of the outcome. The days of the pylons, though, seem numbered at Fratton Park as well.


Aspen Village Map, Arsenal 2020 Kit, Ryan O'callaghan Wiki, Dragons Rugby Captain, Book Titles List, Martin Short Characters, What To Do On Water Island, Benefits Of Lizards In House, Oren Burks Highlights, James Dean Car Accident, Huffing And Puffing Meaning In Tamil, Weather San Francisco, Ca, Usa, Texans Vs Titans Week 15, Oscp Certification Salary, First Word In The Dictionary, Rigel Surface Temperature In Fahrenheit, Japanese Rugby Team Players, Everton Players Weekly Salary 2020, Beowulf (1999 Film), Demon King, Sheffield United Results 2019/20, Tennessee Titans Average Ticket Price, Cary Blanchard Obituary, Fc Dallas Tickets, How To Pronounce Mastiff, Alex Macris Milo, Funny Giraffe Facts, Marthe Keller Al Pacino, Five Feet Apart Netflix Uk, I Love You 3000 Marvel, London House Chicago Wedding, Lil Uzi Vert Eternal Atake Platinum, Bears Giants 2017, Capital Of South Wales Australia, Duncan Supercoach, Browns Vs Steelers 2020, Just Jeans, Jeff Blake Stats, Sign Of Victory Lyrics, Snake Vs Block Unblocked, How To Record A Lesson On Microsoft Teams,