Pompey are mourning the death of Mick Kennedy, who has passed away at the age of 57.
A tough-tackling midfielder, he was a popular member of the side that secured promotion to the top-flight in 1987.
By the time Mick arrived at Fratton Park at the age of 23, he had already racked up more than 200 league appearances for Halifax, Huddersfield and Middlesbrough.
One of his earliest games for the former was in a 2-0 home victory over the Blues in February 1979.
When Alan Ball was appointed manager in the summer of 1984, he paid £100,000 to make Kennedy one of his first signings.
He added much-needed aggression to the centre of the pitch and following two near-misses, finally helped Pompey return to Division One.
The big question for fans was whether they could stay there, but the job was made harder when, against both his and Ball’s wishes, Mick was sold to Bradford for £250,000 midway through the campaign.
Kennedy’s final game for the Blues was certainly a memorable one, though, with Southampton beaten 2-0 at The Dell.
But Pompey would win just two more league games that season and many supporters still point to the sale of Mick – who won two Republic of Ireland caps during his time at the club – as the reason for their relegation.
He would later team up with Ball again at Stoke, also featuring for Leicester, Luton, Chesterfield and Wigan before hanging up his boots.
Kennedy was honoured for his contribution to Pompey last year when he was inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame.
The thoughts of everyone at Portsmouth Football Club are with Mick’s family and friends at this sad time.
Just found out my friend and former team-mate Mick Kennedy passed away yesterday
— Mick Quinn (@mickquinn1089) February 10, 2019
Mick and his family very kindly let me stay with them when I first joined @officialpompey
a very underrated player in my book,and a fantastic skipper in our promotion side
Condolences to his family