Ben Close had yet to establish himself in the first team when Pompey won promotion from the fourth tier a couple of years ago.
The midfielder made just four appearances – all in cup competitions – during the triumphant 2016/17 campaign, spending the second half on loan at Eastleigh.
So it will certainly mean much more to the academy graduate if he can help the Blues climb into the Championship this term.
Close admits that it is thrilling to be part of such a crucial run-in, but is not looking past the Good Friday trip to Burton.
He said: “The race for the top two and the relegation places in this division is very exciting at the moment.
“We’re pleased not to be worrying about going down and our focus is purely on taking one of those automatic promotion spots.
"We had some success at Wembley recently and we hope that leads to more – it’s certainly given me a taste for it."
“I was out on loan when Pompey won the League Two title and not in the team that season, so it wasn’t the same for me.
“It was around this time that year that we beat Notts County and it would be great to do something similar.
“We had some success at Wembley recently and we hope that leads to more – it’s certainly given me a taste for it.
“There’s a lot of confidence, but we’re not really talking too much about it – we’re just looking at going to Burton.”
Close recently put pen paper on a new deal that keeps him at Fratton Park until the summer of 2021, with the option of a further year.
He said: “It something that’s always floating around the back of your mind, so I’m pleased to get it done and now we can just focus on football again.
“You don’t want to be waiting for your contract to run down because it can be nervy, so I was happy to get my future sorted.”