Pompey begin their League One campaign with a "local derby" against Bournemouth at what should be a packed Fratton Park.
Team News
Mikkel Andersen has secured his loan move from Reading and may well start against the Cherries tomorrow, meaning an entirely different team from the side that were defeated at Plymouth on Wednesday chould make its competitive bow.
Brian Howard will lead a group of new players out which will include Jon Harley, Mustapha Dumbuya, Kieran Dijlali, Jack Compton, Lee Williamson, Izale McLeod and Luke Rodgers. However, Ashley Harris and Adam Webster will be vying to start after impressing during midweek.
There may be some more loanees to arrive before tomorrow morning and thus, it will be interesting to see what side Michael Appleton picks for the match.
Paul Groves will return to Fratton Park for the first time since leaving the club as a coach, but another ex-Pompey man in Richard Hughes is unlikely to feature because he is yet to reach match fitness.
Bournemouth are without strikers Josh McQuoid, Frank Demouge and Charlie Sheringham but Tommy Elphick is in line for a debut after signing from Brighton.
The Match
The first game of what looks to be a fight for survival both on and off the pitch should be a good one as the season opens with what looks like the most attractive league fixture.
A crowd of at least 17,000 fans will watch Pompey's first game in the third tier since 1983. It should be a very interesting game as nobody knows what to expect from a side cobbled together by Michael Appleton.
The only clues we have to go by are from the pre-season fixtures. The results since the Spanish debacle have been good and we have seen some slick passing and attacking football at times from this Pompey team, although just how much Liam Lawrence's spark will be missed remains to be seen.
The defence was a worry, especially given how many chances League Two sides Aldershot and Wimbledon managed to create against it. And as much as you might hate him, Tal Ben-Haim was a class above the rest of that back four and he has now departed.
However, I am looking forward to seeing just if Howard and Williamson live up to their big reputations at this level. I am intrigued as to just what back four Appleton picks and as to how many times Harley and Dumbuya will bomb forward and support the attack.
Rodgers and McLeod were prolific in League Two in seasons past and it will be interesting to see if they can make the step up. And who else could be signed on loan before the deadline tomorrow?
Pompey's bunch of rag-tag men will be up against a side which has been assembled by plenty of Russian money and is expected to finish in the top six this season, a situation that is completely alien to Cherries fans.
Big forward signings Josh McQuoid and Frank Demouge are sidelined but Matt Tubbs scored plenty of goals for Crawley in the lower divisions and should be a threat, whilst Miles Addison at the back was once touted for very big things as a youngster at Derby.
Marc Pugh has always caused problems on the wings whilst Bournemouth fans claim that big things are expected of youngster Eunan O'Kane.
This match may serve as a barometer for our expectations for the rest of the season. We might just be alright if we can beat this team convincingly but if we're on the end of a pasting, there'll be trouble ahead.
Of course, it's not even certain that the club will survive the season. Trevor Birch has reportedly given the Trust until next Friday to resolve any issues with their bid, namely the point that the Trust's player compromise sum stands at £2 million whilst Chainrai's was agreed at £8 million.
It's yet another stumbling block which may see the club liquidated. But, for the time being, it will be good just to go to Fratton Park, forget the off-field issues for a while and enjoy what should be a good game of football.
Play Up Pompey!
Click here for the League One Lowdown on Bournemouth.
Click here for an interview with Cherries fan Mark Shergold ahead of tomorrow's match.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Pompey
GK: Mikkel ANDERSEN
RB: Mustapha DUMBUYA
CB: Adam WEBSTER
CB: Josh THOMPSON
LB: Jon HARLEY
RM: Liam WALKER
CM: Lee WILLIAMSON
CM: Brian HOWARD
LM: Jack COMPTON
CF: Izale McLEOD
CF: Luke RODGERS
Bournemouth
GK: Shwan JALAL
RB: Simon FRANCIS
CB: Tommy ELPHICK
CB: Miles ADDISON
LB: Charlie DANIELS
RM: Lewis GRABBAN
CM: Shaun MacDONALD
CM: Eunan O'KANE
LM: Marc PUGH
CF: Wes THOMAS
CF: Matt TUBBS
Last Time: Portsmouth 5 AFC Bournemouth 1 (FA Cup Fourth Round - 26/01/1991)
Pompey ran riot against their lower league counterparts with Guy Whittingham smashing four past the Cherries and Colin Clarke scoring the other. Fereday got a consolation for the visitors.
Frank Burrows' men would be beaten in the next round of the cup, going down 2-1 to Tottenham at White Hart Lane.
My Prediction
This is extremely hard to predict as Bournemouth were disjointed in their midweek defeat to Oxford and haven't played together much during pre-season.
I think our hastily assembled side should give them a game and roared on by a vocal home crowd, I can see Pompey getting a result here.
Portsmouth 1 AFC Bournemouth 1