Portsmouth agitator and former Plymouth boss Derek Adams reveals what started animosity with Paul Cook

Derek Adams has revealed what initiated the well-documented friction he had with former Pompey boss Paul Cook.

The ex-Plymouth manager, who has also struggled massively to endear himself to the Fratton faithful over the years, claims Cook took umbrage over his refusal to engage in any process that would see Reuben Reid move to Fratton Park.

According to Adams, there was no way he was going to entertain selling one of his star players to the Blues - a striker who scored 50 goals in 150 appearances for the Pilgrims. And that’s something Cook wasn’t happy with as he refused to shake the Scot’s hand following a Plymouth v Pompey FA Cup youth game at Home Park.

Adams was asked about his rivalry with Cook when he appeared on the latest episode of the Pilgrims Podcast. It was a hostility that transcended on to the pitch and into the stands as both clubs battled for supremacy during their recent League Two days.

He said: ‘I think the Paul Cook story is quite interesting because Paul was trying to sign Reuben Reid at the time and wasn’t too pleased that I wouldn’t pick up his calls to answer him about Reuben Reid going to Portsmouth, because I didn’t want to sell him.

‘He actually came to a youth game, Portsmouth were playing Plymouth Argyle at Home Park in an under-18 match in the FA Cup and he was sat in the front row.

‘Portsmouth won, I think (Conor) Chaplin scored the goals, and after the game I went to shake his hand and say well done and he said: “No, no, no, I’m not shaking your hand”. ‘I said: “What you mean?” and he replied: “No, no, no, you didn’t return my calls”.

‘I said: “well, I’m not going to return your calls when you’re trying to get one of my star players to come to your football club and done it the way that you’ve done it”.

‘So that’s how it all started and it’s amazing that that then transformed into a rivalry that it was on the pitch.’

Adams said the bad blood between both clubs made Plymouth’s victory over the Blues in the 2015-16 play-off semi-finals extra special.

The pilgrims came out on top 3-2 from the hotly-contested two-legged affair, with Peter Hartley’s stoppage-time header at Home Park in the second game proving decisive. 

‘You wouldn’t believe how pleased I was,’ added Adams, who celebrated the winning goal by dancing down the touchline.

‘You know, to win against Portsmouth - a club that saw us as underdogs, they saw us as a small club!

‘In the two games, we were better than them. We had beaten them just on April 16 at Portsmouth 2-1, you’ve got to remember as well.

‘We had the edge on them and, unfortunately, they didn’t like that.’