Another great FA Cup Victory.

It had been six years since the sides had met when Saints travelled to Fratton for the testimonial of Pompey keeper Alan Knight, luckily for Saints they were still in the top flight, having drawn at West Ham three days earlier to stay up.

16,831 turned out to honour the man they called the Legend at Fratton, to be truthful it wasnt really a Pompey side more a superstar XI, no matter to Saints who took control and won 5-1, towards the end it was more pantomime than contest, Knight went up front and scored and Alan Ball and Dave Beasant also took their turn on the pitch for Saints, Beasant replacing Le Tissier, this being Pompey even the a benefit game meant a chance to attack Saints supporters with a mob running across the pitch at the end to confront Saints supporters.

Competitive jousting re-emerged on 7th January 1996, the first game with meaning for eight years, the Dell was packed to bursting with 15,236 and even Pompey's players admitted that the atmosphere in the tunnell had left them quaking in their boots.

Le Tissier was at his peak and he put Pompey to the sword although he would not have a hand in the first goal after 12 minutes, it would be Jim Magilton who would score this and again a minute after half time to put the game beyond doubt with Pompey being outclassed in every department, the third from Neil Shipperley was a mere formality and the final nail in the coffin, in truth Pompey had been beaten before they had got on the pitch by the noise. 

Photo: Action Images

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