spyinthesky

I thought that too. However an old work colleague worked for EWS (now Schenkers) and was responsible for the hire of their 'upmarket' train carriages which were relocated about 3-4 years ago from a rail yard near the Olympic site in Stratford to Eastleigh. I put him in touch with SMS ahead of the Johnstone Paint Final as EWS had successfully run a number of football specials around that time to prestigious games at Wembley Think they may still do so for selective games Unfortunately Saints weren't interested

Piece in the Echo today re the electrification of the 'spine' route up to the Midlands and the North which will also allow electric trains to access the port Details are very limited but if the spur from Northam to the Eastern Docks was upgraded to allow electric traction, presumably this would open up opportunities for rail access to St Marys As I understand it provision of a platform at St Marys was considered in the early days but ruled out as too expensive as only Diesel engines could access the adjacent track and the passenger trains from London were hauled by electric locos. If the cost of the line upgrade was paid for by the Govt wonder if would be cost effective for the club to fund a Stadium halt, possibly for football 'specials'?

Like the new name 'Pornmouth'!!!!!!!!!!!

In yesterday's Times. Robin Van Persie's north London luxury appartment has been destroyed by fire. The Fire Brigade suspect it was Arsene.

Is it worth buying the Royal Mint Gold coins as a hedge against inflation?

There were no all seaters around at the time Arguably it didnt make too much of a difference to a lot of other clubs who regularly filled their grounds. Pompey had the 14th highest avearge league attendance the second year they won the League just above 3rd Division Hull City!! This was at a time when the Royal Navy had a big contingent of sailors in Pompey to supplement local 'supporters' and a good many Saints fans used to travel to Fratton Park to watch Div 1 football

It is difficult to grasp this 'wonderfully loyal' Pompey fans spin. Since 1960 the average League crowd at Fratton park is 14,050 compared to 19,498 here and until 2001/2 Pompey had the larger capacity ground Incidentally next year Saints will have an all time better average League attendance (from 1920/1) than Pompey. A contact of mine who is a statistician has some more comparative info is anyone is interested One interesting snippet is that when Pompey won the League in the early 50's their highest average attendance was 37,082 (1948/9) , in a 50,000 capacity ground!!!!!!!!!!

Here I am, on a winters day in the middle of 'summer' gearing up for the first of our pre season games (actually second if you count the U21's game at Sholing on Tuesday) Several more games to come!! When I think back to when I was a youngster I seem to remember that pre season games were limited to an in house 'Probables v Possibles' fixture with both teams turning out in worn out gear from ther previous season. A good chance to see any new signings (generally rare) in the Probables team and emerging younsters and long standing reserves in the Possibles Presume some older posters will remember David Chadwick, a decent enough winger, who was understudy to Terry Paine for what seemed to be several years but appeared to be happy to play reserve football for that time It never ceases to amaze me how different things are nowadays

Interested to know how Corps views all this. Perhaps he accepts that the majority of posters on here have a much better idea what is going on at PFC than the ITK contact he regularly sees on a social basis Alternatively the animosity he regularly displayed towards us all has finally consumed him.

Apparently Forte played but another one I missed No Shaw, Ward Prowse or Stephens altho latter there as a spectator Thought we were better 2nd half which a younger squad altho Sholing had made a number of changes by then too

Did Dickson really play first half? Feel sure he wasnt mentioned as paert of the team by the tannoy announcer Difficult to work out who played second half as no mention of the many changes Barnard did not stand out!!

Sat behind his Grandperents at Sholing tonight They has travelled down from Leicester to see him play Apparently he had been offered a deal with Seattle Sounders but happy to stay over here for a 2 week trial Thought he did OK tonight for a youngster

Makes you realise that Pompey will struggle to improve their 'Arena' with their dodgy credit rating Meanwhile wonder if there are any improvement grants around to assist with stadium upgrades for the forthcoming rugby world cup games at St marys?

Understand it cost the club £32m to build Anyone out there have an idea how much a similar stadium would cost today?. Appreciate that critics complain that it is a 'flat pack' design but surely good value for money in today's market and one of the reasons why we were looked upon as a decent investment by the Liebherrs

Pompey news reckons they are still training at Eastleigh Seems that Sam Magri is still with them Thought he had left decent enough player at U 18 level

No sponsor, no players, no kit, no balls!!

Any one got one? If so would you recommend buying one and, if so, what model?

Think the land may have been owned by George Thomas who donated it to the Saints who had been playing at various nondescript grounds around the town, including the home of Hants CC It was one of the best stadiums in the country when opening in 1898 and, presumably, the ground was on the fringes of the city built up area

I tried this morning but as someone form the pen and pencil age found it difficult to find the shots I was interested in Is there an easy way of accessing the local pictures?

I actually found my original signing on form a while ago but now can't locate it!! I think I started training at the Dell when I was in the Upper Sixth form at school, so this would have been the start of the 1966/7 season which does tie in with Cliff being at the Dell. I also remember playing one game (at BTC) when Jimmy Melia had his first game back after a knee operation. He was late and the three Pompey boys in the team at the time (George Rodgers, Roy Hambley and Bobby Stokes gave him some stick!!) Biggest crowd of the season watched the game and we all tried to make an impression on Ted Bates and the watching scouts. In my case it was a waste of time as I was never going to make it as a pro but I really enjoyed the experience. Most of us kids got to grow up quick against the older, quite physical, players in the Hants league at the time Before the home games at BTC we used to go to the Dell to collect kit and take the coach to Stoneham Lane Recollect that there used to be a uniformed Commisioner (bit like front of house at the Pictures at the time) who had to check your pass before letting you into the Players entrance It was so different those days!!

Duncan The third ex player in the clip is Bill Stroud. Many on here may know his son, young Billy, a local character

I was on the books of the Saints as a youngster back in the late 60's (selected at an open trial at the CPC ground at Rownhams) Played for the old A and B sides in the Hampshire league (then a decent standard) with the likes of Bobby Stokes, Paul Bennett, Bob Mcarthy etc who were young pros. Most of the rest of us were signed on amateur forms. We used to train every Tuesday and Thursday evening at the Dell. Training consisted of running round the shingle perimeter of the Dell, 5 a side in the Car park and, occasionally, using the (then) recently built gym under the West Stand. This smelt of sweat and dust. I once got kicked pretty hard by Cliff Huxford who took no prisoners, even amongst raggady arsed young wanna bees. After training us nippers would head for the bus station to get our transport home, sometimes enjoying a half a shandy in the Lord Louis and a scallding hot Plesteds Pie, if it wasnt too late. We used to get sent telegrams advising us if we were selected for games. Home games were played at the BTC ground Both Bill Ellerington and George Horsfall were involved with Saints at the time

Totally shameful Wasnt it the demented Toy Salesman who consistently argued that all the smaller creditors and charities had been paid?

Not far from Jeopardy. Plenty of jobs in Jeopardy

To be fair, cheaper tickets this year at FP