All At Sea guide: Portsmouth

PROBABLY the one away game that actually inspired some excitement ahead of the League Two fixtures being released, and true to form, the computer shoehorned it in on a Tuesday night in November.
If you are planning to defy the powers-that-be and head down to Hampshire, you will be rewarded with a visit to one of the most atmospheric grounds in the country.
Fratton Park is in the south east of Portsmouth, close to Fratton station but about a 25 minute walk from the city centre.
It actually is possible to get there and back by train, but you might have to spend the last five minutes of the match sprinting back through the streets of Portsmouth. If you’re planning to get back to Essex, the last train you can get is the 2203 from Fratton, from which you change at Eastleigh and get back into Waterloo at 0009, leaving you with a nervy jaunt round the Underground to get back to Fenchurch Street or Liverpool Street before your last train home departs.
You might want to let the TZ coaches take the strain (info later in the issue) or drive down. Parking is mostly in the terraced streets around the ground and is plentiful.
As for pubs, the closest one to the ground which is away fan-friendly is The Brewers Arms on Milton Road, a five-minute stroll from the away end. However, the Milton Arms next door is apparently best avoided. The Good Companion pub on Eastern Road is also recommended. The city centre has a few decent outlets, and a Wetherspoon next to Portsmouth and Southsea station.
Ticket prices for this battle are £20 in all areas of the ground. Southend fans will be behind one goal in the Milton End, which now has a roof. Plenty of room for us, with about 2,000 seats normally allocated.
Our last visit to Fratton Park was in our last-but-one spell in the Championship back in August 1996, where Lee Russell bagged a winning goal for the hosts, who had the late Aaron Flahavan in goal and Lee Bradbury on their bench.