'I was still mourning my girlfriend's death': The tragedy behind Bristol City and ex-Luton man Kal Naismith's Portsmouth title glory

The Scot endured a difficult first south-coast season after joining from Accrington Stanley in May 2015, subsequently finding himself transfer-listed the following summer.

Yet few realised the attacker was nursing heartbreak when he arrived, following the passing of girlfriend Ashley after suffering an epileptic fit while in bed at her Glasgow home seven months earlier.

According to Naismith in new book Played Up Pompey Four, his grief and the excruciating distance separated from his friends and family in Scotland contributed to a maiden Pompey season he describes as ‘a disaster’.

However, his career was transformed in 2016-17, culminating in scoring twice against Cheltenham in May 2017 to claim the title. It represented one of the best days of his career - with Ashley’s family in attendance.

‘Football was a disaster during my early Fratton Park days. Paul Cook got the wrong impression of me, and I think some fans had also. Granted, I’m laid back and relaxed, yet there was this wrong perception that I didn’t care about the game. The manager saw me as this single lad living in Portsmouth but I wasn’t even speaking to another human being, let alone going out and enjoying myself at night,’ he told Played Up Pompey Four.

‘Amid it all, I was still mourning my girlfriend Ashley, who passed away following an epileptic seizure in October 2014. Just seven months after her death, I was now living the furthest point away from my Glasgow home and family.

‘Pompey was a move from Accrington Stanley which I couldn’t possibly turn down - what an amazing club - yet I was in a one-bedroom Gunwharf flat on my own, isolated, and unable to afford to fly my mum down for a visit. The truth is, it impacted on my performances in that first south-coast season.

‘Ashley had suffered from epilepsy since the age of 11 or 12, yet back then our understanding of her condition was not as detailed as these days. We just assumed she was fine.

‘She suffered seizures a lot, every few weeks, although differing in severity, and dealing with it became a standard procedure. Whenever it occurred, you stayed with her, making sure she couldn’t hurt herself. Then she’d come around after an hour, initially unsure of where she was, before becoming emotional having realised the situation.

‘She never complained, just soldiered on. Then one day Ashley went into a seizure and never came out of it.

‘She was at her parents’ home in Summerston, Glasgow, when it happened, while I was back in Manchester after spending the previous two days with her. I rang her before bedtime, we chatted, then the next day I went to training with Accrington.

‘When I returned to the changing room and checked my phone, I discovered the news. Ashley was in bed when she passed at the age of 22. Nobody was there to look after her.

‘It was never mentioned that epilepsy could kill her. You visited the doctor, were given tablets and managed it. That was it. I always made sure she slept as much as she could, as when she was tired it could trigger an attack.

‘Knowing what I do now, we would have done things differently. I would have been a lot stricter with her diet in addition to sleep times, but I didn't know at the time. I don’t even know if that definitely would have helped.

‘I returned to Glasgow for a month to grieve. I didn’t play football, didn’t do any fitness, I wasn’t living well, stuck in bed and not eating as well as I should. When I eventually came back, I trained for a week and appeared as a substitute in an FA Cup game at Notts County in November 2014, before being restored to the starting line-up at Carlisle United.

‘I had a nightmare match. I should have trained for four weeks before playing a game. My body was broken and I was mentally drained. I was tired and unfit - still in my grieving period.’

Having been transfer-listed by Pompey in May 2016, Naismith was forced to train with the Academy and instructed not to eat with the first-team players.

However, in a remarkable redemption story, he returned to finish as 15-goal top-scorer and the attacking inspiration behind 10 wins from their final 12 matches to claim the League Two title.

Naismith added: ‘I never thought we’d win the title on the final day against Cheltenham Town. Since Notts County it had been a case of let’s stay unbeaten, win the remaining three games and see what happens. After all, we’d already achieved promotion and the fans were buzzing.

‘We triumphed 6-1, I scored twice to take my season’s tally to 15 goals, and we won the League Two title.

‘It was such a party atmosphere. My mum, brother and girlfriend were present at Fratton Park, as were Ashley’s family on their first visit. Incredible. How did that even happen? It remains one of the best days of my career.’

Played Up Pompey Four is priced £18.99 and available from the Pompey Store and Waterstone’s in Portsmouth, Fareham, Chichester, Petersfield and Whiteley.

It can also be ordered online from Amazon. For player-autographed copies, email [email protected]

Meanwhile, tickets for the Played Up Pompey Four launch evening at Fratton Park are on sale, with Naismith, Harry Redknapp, Gareth Evans, Kit Symons, Danny Rose, Mark Chamberlain, Richie Reynolds and Tommy Youlden confirming their attendance.

Taking place on Friday (September 27), all ticket proceeds are to be donated to Pompey In The Community and the Pompey History Society.