What does Pompey mean to me?

About a month ago I asked what it meant to you to be a Pompey Fan. Many thanks to those who took part in replying and apologies that it took so long for me to put this article together, but here it is.

Portsmouth, like most clubs, pride themselves on having a loyal, passionate fanbase the truly encapsulates what it means to share this fanatical obsession with hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Of those who took part in this study, responses came from New Zealand, Lithuania, West Africa and even Devon, as well as few from Pompey.

The stories of how they first came about supporting the club vary accordingly, from the common "taken to a game when I was only knee high", to "falling out of love with football (before visiting Fratton Park and becoming 'hooked')". One of the most interesting stories is about a fan who stumbled across Portsmouth on a computer game, and subsequently watching a Portsmouth game on TV (v Spurs) in doing so finding a new passion which has stuck with him.

With such a widespread set of fans, it would be easy to lose sight or stop caring, especially given the courage it has taken to keep following the club over the last few years. But not with our fans, who all state the need find a way of listening to the match every Saturday, regardless of where they are in the world, and what the time is locally. Fratton Park often sees crowds in excess of 16,000, but that can be multiplied to account for those who are listening at home and are there 'in spirit'.

Even those who can get to the matches on a regular basis have to pull out all the stops to make it, with some spending most their time and money travelling to the match just to spend 2 hours watching a game of football, which often ends up in disappointment. But ask any one of them, and I'm relatively certain they wouldn't want it any other way.

As for the future, there is a clearly an overwhelming urge to pass on this legacy, many have memories of being taken to Fratton Park with their Dads, and to re-live that from the opposite perspective will be equally, if not more rewarding for the Fathers (& Mothers) in question. In one sense, going to the football is a family event, extended by those who consider the fans to be one big (very noisy) family.

So sit back and enjoy the accounts of those who contributed over the next few days (they will be added one at a time), and thank you very much for sharing your stories/memories/emotions...

Written by PompeyFrippy.

The views within this article are the views of the individual who wrote and submitted this piece, sometimes solely theirs. They are not necessarily shared by the Vital Pompey Site Journalists.