Champions Parade curtain raiser set for huge crowd

Every year huge crowds flock to Westleigh Park to see early glimpses of Portsmouth’s biggest two sides but this year their will be a carnival on top of the party at Havant and Waterlooville’s spiritual home.

With both sides winning their respective leagues last season both teams are on a crest of a wave. With Havant and Waterlooville winning the Ryman League on the final day of the season at Kingstonian and Pompey pulling of the shock of the season by winning League 2 despite being to of the league for just 33 minutes.

The success on the pitch ordinarily means a larger crowd would consider the trip, however on top of that there is a buzz on social media sites which could see the fixture gain a 3,000 plus crowd. The game I being promoted on social media sites such as Pompey News Now with such promotional reaching nearly 3,500 people in one day alone. The effort of that website twinned with Bognor and Havant’s twitter saw 3,445 people flock to Westleigh Park to see the Ryman League title clash between the sides on Easter Monday.

For Havant and Waterlooville this game is crucial as it is a huge money spinner. A crowd of over 2,600 were in attendance for the fixture last season with the money made from that game being crucial towards the clubs finance in the season that followed. And should the attendance here be similar to that against Bognor, the gate could be crucial in giving the club some added sums for the season ahead in the National League South.

Whilst talking about the crowd it fails to put into the melting pot the ex Pompey stars that will fair against their former sides. Manager Lee Bradbury a pompey legend, leads his Hawks side into his fifth fixture against his former team, with Bradley Tarbuck still at the tender age of 21 looking to prove a point against his former employers. Wes Fogden who enjoyed 18 months at Fratton Park before he moved to Yeovil in 2015 and Matt Tubbs who just two and a half years ago was a star signing for the blues.

A fascinating fixture at Fratton Park it is sure to be with a large crowd expected, make sure that you get down to Westleigh Park for one of the highlights of the season.