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| Contents | |
| What's
Fratton Park Like? Looking Towards The Fratton End (photo) What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters? South Stand (photo) Where To Drink? North Stand (photo) How To Get There And Where To Park By Train Milton End (photo) Local Rivals Admission Prices For Away Fans Programme & Fanzines Ground Layout Fixtures 2011-2012 Disabled Facilities Record & Average Attendance Fans Ground Reviews Hotel Accommodation Fratton Park Location Map Other Places Of Interest |
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| What's Fratton Park Like? | |
| At one end is the Fratton End, which
is a new looking single tiered stand. It is of a good size and is the
tallest stand at the ground. Opposite is
the recently covered Milton
End, which is all seated. Part of this stand us given to
away fans. There is a small moat
in front of this area. Both side stands
are two tiered and originally had terracing at the
front, which has now been replaced with seating. The
South Stand dates back to 1925,
and is starting to show its age. However, it still has some character
with an old fashioned
looking media gantry perched on its roof and raised team dugouts at its
front. Opposite the North
Stand looks somewhat plain and
functional. Both the North & South Stands are
two tiered and have a number of supporting
pillars. The ground is
completed with a superb looking set of tall
floodlights that were first used in 1962. If you get chance to wander around the outside of the ground beforehand then make sure to go down towards the home end to look at the mock tudor facade in Frogmore Road. |
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| Looking Towards The Fratton End | |
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| What Is It Like For Visiting Supporters? | |
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At long last the Club have erected
a roof over the Milton End. Although there are some
supporting pillars along the front of the stand
that may impede you view, at least you will be
in the dry. Further good news is that the roof
now means that away fans can now really make
some noise, further contributing to what is
normally a great atmosphere. However, the
facilities are not particularly great and the leg
room tight, as this area was a
former terrace that has
been converted to all seating.
However, once you put that to one
side then at least Fratton Park is a proper
looking football ground, with a great atmosphere
(which is aided by a drummer and bell ringer in
the home end). So sit back and enjoy it as such
grounds now are becoming few and far between
with the advent of new stadia being built. |
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| Where To Drink? | |
| On my last visit I went to the Good
Companion pub, which is on the main A2030 about a
five minute walk away from the ground. It is a large
pub serving Gale real ales and had a good mix of
home and away support. I also noticed that it was
doing a brisk business in food. Martin Hewitt
recommends the Harvester, but advises away fans to
avoid the Milton Arms and the Newcome Arms. Whilst
Ian Pratt suggests the Brewers Arms which is 'always
popular with away fans'. Steve Yeoman a visiting
Manchester United fan informs me; 'just outside the
ground at the north east corner a large enclosed
white marquee has been erected for away fans. It has
a bar, televisions and was free to enter. There is a
handy burger van located outside'. Derek Hall adds; 'Found a cracking little pub, about a mile away from the ground, on Fawcett Road. It's called (very appropriately) The Red, White and Blue. There are also a few other pubs - and plenty of take-aways (of all varieties) along this road. Friendly staff, friendly Pompey fans (chiefly, of the elder variety) and simple food fayre on offer. To reach the pub, you just head west from the ground, towards the Fratton Railway Station, along Goldsmith Avenue. Just past the station, you reach a roundabout - and Fawcett Road is immediately on your left'. Pete Wood a visiting Doncaster Rovers fan informs me; 'If travelling by train from London, then your return ticket from London Waterloo allows you to get off at either Fratton (nearest to ground), Portsmouth & Southsea (best for pubs) or Portsmouth Harbour. What we did was have a drink in the two Wetherspoon pubs near Portsmouth & Southsea Station before getting the train back to Fratton for the match. You can catch a train back to Waterloo from Fratton after the game. The trains run every 20 or 30 minutes or so'. |
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| How To Get There And Where To Park | |
| Go
along the M27 (ignoring the M275 turn off for
Portsmouth town centre) and
continue on to the A27. At the junction with
the A2030 turn right towards Southsea/Fratton and just continue straight along the
A2030 and eventually you will see the ground in front
of you, just slightly to your left.
There is a large car park behind the TY Europe Stand, but this is for home supporters only. So it is mostly street parking for away fans. The good news is that there are few parking restrictions in place close to the ground. So if you arrive early enough, you can park only a few minutes walk away. When I have visited, I have parked in one of the side streets, found on the right hand side of the A2030 before you reach the Good Companion pub. Alternatively Miltoncross School, which is a five minute walk from the ground offers parking at £6 per car. The school is located in Milton Road (post code PO3 6RB). Derek Hall adds; 'There is also a very large car park (for a fiver) on the corner of Velder Avenue and Milton Road (a couple of minutes walk behind the away end)'. Map showing the location of Fratton Park (at the bottom of this page). |
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| By Train | |
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The
nearest local train station is Fratton, which is a
ten minute walk away. Portsmouth train station is at
least a 25 minute walk away. Thanks to Peter Coulthard for providing the directions. |
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| Local Rivals | |
| Southampton. | |
| Admission Prices For Away Fans | |
| Portsmouth operate a category system (A
& B) whereby the most popular games cost more to
watch. Category B prices are shown below in
brackets. Milton End: Adults £30 (B £27) Over 60's/Under 23's £22 (B £20) Under 16's £15 (B £13) Category A games are against: Brighton, Derby, Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Southampton and West Ham United. |
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| Programme & Fanzines | |
| Official Programme £3 True Blue Fanzine £1.50 Park Life Fanzine £1.50 |
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| Fixtures 2011-2012 | |
| Portsmouth FC fixture list (takes you to the BBC Sports Website). | |
| Disabled Facilities | |
| For details of disabled facilities and club contact at the ground please visit the relevant page on the Level Playing Field website. | |
| Record & Average Attendance | |
| Record
Attendance: 51,385 v Derby County FA Cup 6th Round, February 26th, 1949. Modern All Seated Attendance Record: 20,821 v Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League, October 17th 2009. Average Attendance: 2010-2011: 15,707 (Championship League) 2009-2010: 18,249 (Premier League) 2008-2009: 19,694 (Premier League) |
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| Fans Reviews Of Fratton Park | |
| Alex Smith (Coventry
City) 3/12/11 Dean Williamson (Blackpool) 24/9/11 Andrew Daffren (Leicester City) 24/9/10 Peter Radford (Wycombe Wanderers) 26/01/10 Lee Jones (Swansea City) 24/01/09 Neil Harding (Hull City) 22/11/08 Kevin McCann (Stirling Albion Fan Doing The 92) 23/2/08 Tim Watson (Derby County) 19/1/08 Adam Bernstein (Arsenal) 26/12/07 Martin Hart (Visiting Scottish Fan) 29/9/07 |
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| Hotel Accommodation | |
| If you require hotel accommodation in the area then first try a hotel booking service provided by Late Rooms. They offer all types of accommodation to suit all tastes and pockets from; Budget Hotels, Traditional Bed & Breakfast establishments to Five Star Hotels and Serviced Apartments. Plus their booking system is straightforward and easy to use. Yes this site will earn a small commission if you book through them, but it will go to help with the running costs of keeping the Guide going. The Hotels listing also includes details of how far away the accommodation is located from the football ground. Access their Portsmouth Hotels and Guest Houses page. | |
| Map Showing The Location Of Fratton Park, Railway Stations and Listed pubs | |
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Instructions for using
the map:
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| Other Places Of Interest | |
| Southsea
adjoining Portsmouth houses the naval base and
includes historic ships such as HMS Victory. You can
get a short boat trip around the harbour showing which
warships are in dock. Southsea itself is quite
pleasant with a small beach and funfair. In fact when
I went to the game I met a strange lady who travelled
down to Portsmouth for each game by herself from
Wolverhampton! When asked why, she replied that she
had been taken to Southsea as a child and therefore
liked to visit it before each game. So there you go it
wasn't the football that was the attraction! Simon Eddy adds; 'there is a new development called the Gunwharf Quays, which has opened adjacent to the historic ships dockyard. There are a number of bars, restaurants, plus a bowling alley, cinema and shopping factory outlet. For more details visit www.gunwharf-quays.com'. The quays incorporate the spectacular Spinnaker Tower, which is well worth a visit for some stunning views from over 300 feet up. Anyone intending to visit the City Centre, Gunwharf Quays or the Old Portsmouth area before the game would be better off entering the city on the M275 rather than the A2030. |
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| Feedback | |
| If
anything is incorrect or you have something to add,
please e-mail me duncan@footballgrounds.net
and I'll update the guide. |
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