Revealed: Portsmouth chief highlights next £1.7m project to enhance Fratton Park

The Blues have identified a sizeable investment into their playing surface, involving creating a state-of-the-art sand-based pitch and installing undersoil heating.

According to Pompey’s chief executive, the club are currently exploring options and potential suppliers, with a timeframe put at within 2-3 years or ‘hopefully sooner’.

The introduction of a new hybrid pitch would enable Fratton Park to host all Pompey Women fixtures, in addition to first-team commitments.

Indeed, Jay Sadler’s side turned out there on Sunday, losing the south-coast derby with Southampton 5-0 in a disappointing display.

And following recent work in the North Stand and Fratton End area, Cullen is targeting the playing surface as the next capital project.

He told The News: ‘Obviously we have made some improvements at the same time in terms of the overall facilities and experiences for supporters on match days, such as the Fan Zone, Victory Lounge and improving the mezzanine in the North Stand.

‘The pitch is definitely part of that project and something we need to look at in the very near future. The limitations are we have an old, soil-based pitch at Fratton Park.

‘A new carpet was put in under the pitch in 2019. They provide a degree of stability for the roots to go in, but each time you have a renovation, which is every summer, obviously that carpet deteriorates.

‘Whereas a new pitch will have 10-12 years of life, a carpet is much, much shorter. Rather than put a new carpet down, we would look at doing the pitch properly. Certainly we hope to do that within 2-3 years, hopefully sooner.

‘It would be a hybrid pitch, so effectively you have a mix of grass and plastic fibres on a sand-base. Sand-based pitches have gravel and sand, which provides better drainage.

‘In addition, a Premier League requirement is undersoil heating. We are lucky in Portsmouth that we don’t need it too much. Since I’ve been here, we’ve had no need for frost covers or undersoil heating, but it is a Premier League requirement.

‘You put the pipes in so they are ready to connect up at such a time, but it’s not cheap. The project of a new pitch with undersoil heating is about £1.7m, which is a sizable investment among a whole range of capital projects.

‘I am conscious that investment in Fratton Park and the training ground is now well over £20m. Most businesses' capital projects come out of profits and football clubs continue to be loss-making, so obviously you are relying on the generosity of owners to fund that.’

Before Sunday, Pompey Women last played at Fratton Park in March, with a 4-0 success over Rugby Borough.

And their former chairman Eric Coleborn has previously spoken of the club’s ambition to eventually switch all their fixtures from Westleigh Park to Frogmore Road.

Cullen added: ‘As a soil-based pitch, we need to be quite protective of the number of games we currently play on it.

‘Once we are able to get to a position where we can move to a new pitch, which will be sand-based, that will enable us to potentially move all of the women’s games to Fratton Park.

‘At the moment, we’re probably looking to run 2-3 women’s games a season, plus a couple of other events such as the Armed Forces match in March.

‘We are still in a position where grass grows in October, so the ground staff can put the extra game on. The next home match is October 25 (Sheffield Wednesday), so that works for everybody and enabled us to put on Sunday’s Pompey Women game.

‘I don’t want to put a time span on it, but the pitch will be replaced within the next few years. We are currently looking at different opportunities with different suppliers, so we’re getting an idea of cost.

‘We need one eye on the future as well, it's not just a new pitch, it’s a new drainage system, with the present one more than 15 years old.’