Danny Cowley was disappointed when the fixture computer churned out an away fixture on the opening day of the 2021/22 campaign.
But his mood improved when told that Pompey fans had snapped up their full allocation of tickets for the League One curtain-raiser at Fleetwood.
More than 1,000 supporters are making the 573-mile round trip to Highbury Stadium, spending around 10 hours on the road.
Cowley is impressed that so many are making that sacrifice in order to get behind their team this weekend.
The Blues boss said: “I’m a football romantic and it’s the first game of the season, so I’m really looking forward to it.
“We’re going to be backed by 1,000 fans at a ground that’s five-and-a-half hours away – there aren’t many third tier clubs in the world that would carry that level of support on the road.
“That means everyone to us and I can’t tell you how appreciative we are for everybody who’s willing to give up their time and hard-earned money to get behind the players.
"There aren’t many third tier clubs in the world that would carry that level of support on the road."
“For us to be successful this season, it’s not going to be an 11-man job and we know our supporters can be the definer for us.
“They’re unique for this level and there won’t be a better base than what we have, so we have to create something they can look forward to.
“We’re working really to achieve that and it’s been great to meet more and more supporters. We feel the love and want to build on that.”
Pompey face a Cod Army side that finished 15th in League One last term, having reached the play-offs the previous campaign.
Cowley said: “We’re respectful of Fleetwood and know they’re a good team, with an experienced manager in Simon Grayson.
“We watched them a lot during pre-season and they played a back three for the majority of that time, while they’re organised and carry a threat on the counter-attack.
“So we’ll have to be at our best and will have to bring our ‘A game’ on Saturday if we want to get the result we’d like.”
Pompey have no new injury concerns and are close to being able to welcome back one of their defenders.
Cowley said: “Paul Downing is making good progress from a hamstring injury. He’s back on the grass and not far away from being available
“Liam Vincent is recovering from a stress fracture in his shin. He’s mostly doing non-weight bearing work and it’s frustrating for him because he’s starved of doing what he loves.”