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Latest Portsmouth News:
- » Ward completes Cherries loan move
- Bournemouth complete the signing of Portsmouth defender Joel Ward on a season-long loan.
- » Ref Clattenburg hit by suspension
- Referee Mark Clattenburg is suspended pending enquiries into reports regarding his alleged debts and has been replaced for the Community Shield game.
- » Keeper Begovic agrees Yeovil loan
- Yeovil Town finalise a three-month loan deal with Portsmouth for Bosnian-born Canadian goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.
- » Kanu pens new Portsmouth contract
- Nigeria's Nwankwo Kanu signs a new one-year deal with the FA Cup holders.
- » Diarra doubt for Community Shield
- Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra is unlikely to play a major part in the Community Shield against Manchester United on Sunday.
- » Portsmouth loan Koroma to Norwich
- Gambian teenage striker Omar Alieu Koroma joins Norwich City in a season-long loan from Portsmouth.
- » Redknapp backs new strike pairing
- Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp says he expects Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch to be a successful partnership.
- » Pompey close to deal for Kaboul
- Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp hopes to seal a deal for Tottenham defender Younes Kaboul in the next few days, from under the noses of Sunderland.
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Portsmouth
Portsmouth Football Club was founded in April 1898 and was formed out of the ashes of the popular local Royal Artillery team who had been forced to disband after a breach of amateur rules. Season 1906/07 was highlighted by the visit of Manchester United in the English Cup. A 2-2 draw meant a replay at Manchester and a 2-1 giant killing by the Pompey boys followed.
The season 1926/27 was one of the most momentous in the club's history with promotion to the elite First Division dramatically gained on the last day of the campaign.
A remarkable cup run in 1933/34 captivated the city. Manchester United were beaten 4-1 and Bolton Wanderers 3-0, amongst others, before Leicester 4-1 and a Jack Weddle hat-trick against Birmingham in the semi-final took Pompey to Wembley to meet Manchester City. Pompey were unable to stop Manchester City's star centre-forward Tilson from notching both the goals for their 2-1 win.
1938-39 saw Pompey as outsiders in the Cup Final against a highly-rated Wolves team. The whole country expected the Midlanders to find consolation at Wembley for missing out on the league title. On the day Pompey were simply magnificent and swept the young Wolves aside with a superb display.
In the early 1950s Portsmouth consolidated their place in the top flight, but slowly slid into decline as the Championship-winning players began to age. An FA Cup quarter-final tie against the mighty cup fighters Newcastle United in March 1952 saw the Jackie Milburn-inspired Geordies sweep to a 4-2 victory.
The appointment of George Smith in April 1961 came too late to save Pompey from relegation and a return to Division Three after 37 years. The following decade saw Pompey being relegated from the second division, where the club had been permanent residents for 15 years, may have seemed like the end of the world, but it wasn't. It was in fact just the start. Pompey proceeded to go straight through to the basement division, an unthinkable prospect for a team and club that had been feared throughout the country just two decades previously.
Pompey started off at a cracking pace as the 1980s began, winning nine of their first ten games, scoring six against Scunthorpe, five against York City, four against Darlington and four against Bradford City. The 1990/91 season began in unspectacular fashion. Pompey had the look of a struggling side, taking them 7 games to find a win. By March Pompey were in deep relegation trouble. Tony Barton, who served the club so well as a player, took over on as temporaty manager and in the remaining 12 games steered Pompey clear of relegation by just five points.
The summer of 2006 saw Portsmouth preparing for its fourth consecutive season in the Premier League and looking at a bright future befitting of a club with such a long, rich and distinguished history.
