Now he's written a book about his experiences as a Pompey fan.

Chuck Culpepper chose Pompey as the subject of his new book while he was unpacking a suitcase with Match of the Day on in the background.

The great roar coming out of his TV set gave him goosebumps and made him look up to see who was making this extraordinary sound.

It was March 11, 2006. Portsmouth had got just one point since New Year's Day, hadn't won all season and looked like they were going to be relegated from the Premiership.

Then, in the 93rd minute of a tense match against Manchester City at Fratton Park, Pompey star Pedro Mendes unleashed a sensational strike. The match was won and delirium ensued.

It was to be the turning point of the club's season. To Chuck, an American sportswriter who had come to live in the UK just a few weeks before, it was fascinating - and inspirational.

He recalls: 'Why bother with sport? Here's the number one answer; because you might hear this kind of noise. It might swim through your ear canals and rustle your soul and electrify your skin and maybe even prolong your life.

'For me, following sport is largely about the hunt for that noise. Even as somebody who couldn't get to Portsmouth without a map, I had this thought: oh to be in attendance.'

After 20 years writing about American sport, twice being nominated for a Pulitzer Prize,

Chuck had fallen in love and moved from New York to London. But he needed to work, so he pitched to publishers the idea of a book about an ignorant Yank trying to understand the strange world of English football.

He needed a team to follow - and not one of the big names. He wanted one preferably in danger of relegation, an alien concept to Chuck but something he discovered could produce the whole gamut of gut-wrenching emotions in the average fan.

So it was that this 45-year-old brought up on baseball, basketball and American football found himself spending a season supporting Portsmouth home and away. Taken out of the press boxes of his profession, he was back in the stands.

Soon he was befriended by die-hard fans, including one who dressed in a blue furry bear costume complete with giant Pompey crest.

Chuck says: 'He was called Charlie Allum and he was like a pied piper when he went into a pub. He used to tell people he'd adopted an American.'

As the season unfolded, Charlie and his mates took Chuck for pre-match beers, introduced him to the delights of the meat raffle and South West Trains and even bought him a Pompey shirt with CULPEPPER on the back.``

The fierce rivalry with Southampton was explained to him, as were the songs sung by burly men. His new Fratton friends also taught him a lot about passion - he recalls being impressed by the 'honesty' of one supporter wearing a shirt bearing the legend ''Portsmouth is my religion, Fratton Park is my church''.

Chuck's experiences are recorded in Up Pompey: A Clueless American Sportswriter Bumbles Through English Football, which has been shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year award.

Chuck chose Portsmouth for several reasons. He knew they were hovering around the relegation zone and that they had some of the country's most passionate supporters. He also grew up close to Portsmouth, Virginia in the USA and had a grandfather who was a tugboat captain full of tales of the sea.

Chuck says: 'I knew I would feel some affinity with Portsmouth because of him.'

But he admits: 'I really knew very little. I knew they played in blue but I couldn't have named a player.'

His first visit to Fratton Park was on April 15, 2006 to see Pompey play Middlesbrough. He says: 'Portsmouth won 1-0 that day and I couldn't believe the noise and exuberance, with children dancing up and down the aisles singing ''we are staying up''. It was an emotional experience and something about this rackety old place just grabbed me.
'In America we love decrepit old stadiums. We think there is some sort of honour in not having luxury boxes.'

The turnaround in Pompey's fortunes since Chuck started watching them has been incredible. He says: 'It's so surprising that the team I started following in danger of relegation are now at the top end of the Premiership and aiming to get into Europe.'

Chuck happily admits Pompey have got under his skin. He still watches them on TV, checks for their results and, work permitting, is planning to try to get to some games before the end of this season.

He says: 'I get nervous when they're playing and always want them to win. I'm a fan now but I don't know or understand enough about the legacy, all the things that have happened in the past, to ever be among the hardcore. Maybe in 20 years' time I can move in from the fringe.'

Up Pompey: A Clueless American Sportswriter Bumbles Through English Football is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, price £16.99.
The winner of the 2007 William Hill Sports Book of the Year will be announced on November 26.