Pompey heading for lowest Saturday attendance in recent years

Just 950 advanced tickets have been sold for the Checkatrade Trophy second-round tie (12.30pm) and only the South Stand will be open.

The lowest-attended game at Fratton Park in the post-war era was last season’s 1-0 defeat of Bristol Rovers in the same competition, with 1,200 tickets being sold.

The News has looked back on all of the Blues’ attendances in the past 10 years and the clash against the Cobblers will certainly be the lowest home attendance for a Saturday encounter in that period.

The home end is a near-enough sell-out most weekends at Fratton Park.

Nevertheless, there have been some games that haven’t sold as many tickets as per usual.

The lowest Fratton Park attendance on a Saturday in the past decade was on November 3, 2013, when Pompey faced Notts County in the FA Cup first round.

Things were bleak for the Blues at the time. They were heading towards successive relegations and boss Michael Appleton had been linked with Blackpool.

Fans protested with their feet and just 7,560 attended the game.

The lowest attendance on a Saturday last season was also in the opening round of the FA Cup.

Just 8,130 tickets were sold for Paul Cook’s side’s 2-1 loss against Wycombe Wanderers.

Meanwhile, the lowest-attended league fixture was the clash against Hartlepool on January 26, 2013 in League One.

Pompey had lost their past four matches and only 10,981 people attended the game against the Pools.

The Blues suffered a 3-1 defeat and were condemned to a fifth straight loss.