Pompey are mourning the death of John Collins, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 71.
The left-back made a total of 87 appearances for the Blues after being signed by Ron Tindall in the summer of 1971.
He played rugby as a youngster, but switched to football as a teenager and made two appearances for Tottenham.
A fee of £5,000 saw the Wales under-23 international move to the south coast and he was initially used as a midfielder.
Collins’ debut arrived in a 2-1 home victory over Middlesbrough on the opening day of the 1971/72 Division Two campaign.
He struggled to retain his spot, but impressed more when returning in a full-back role and became a regular fixture in the side.
Collins played in the first ever Fratton fixture to take place on a Sunday – a goalless draw with Orient in the FA Cup.
He also appeared in both replays, as the Blues finally battled through to the third round of the competition.
An £8,000 switch to Halifax followed in the summer of 1974, with Collins later having spells at Sheffield Wednesday and Barnsley, winning promotion with the latter.
The thoughts of everyone at Portsmouth Football Club are with John’s family and friends at this sad time.