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 119G - Edition 1,200

Portsmouth Football Club

It all started in 1898 in the offices of a solicitor, in High Street, Portsmouth. The land in Goldsmith Avenue was purchased for the princely sum of £4,950, and stands were swiftly erected on the north and south sides. The original company was launched with a capital of £8,000 in £1 shares and their were five directors of the new club. The appointment of the first Pompey manager caused the most excitement. He was Frank Brettell, an experienced and respected manager who had helped develop clubs such as Everton, Liverpool, Bolton and Tottenham Hotspur. Brettell keenly set to the task of recruiting players to the new outfit. Many of the new players were from the north - Wilkie, Cleghorn, Marshall and Cuncliffe from Liverpool and Turner, Stringfellow and Clark from Everton. However, some local players from the disbanded RA were brought in by Brettell as well, including Matt Reilly, the popular Irish keeper, and Harry Turner, a respected full-back. An application was accepted for the new club to join the Southern League First Division without the usual probationary period. The team was all set - now all it had to do was win football matches.